


Peter Parker: The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 1

by Spideyfan62



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Comicverse), Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man (Ultimateverse), Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Spectacular Spider-Man (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M, Not Canon Compliant, Really a Mesh of A lot of Different Universes, eventual spideychelle
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-08-23
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:29:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 30,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25495384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spideyfan62/pseuds/Spideyfan62
Summary: "Wooohooo!!!" Peter yelled, somersaulting a few times before firing another web line. Eventually, he landed atop one of his favorite destinations when it came to overlooking the city: the Chrysler building. He landed on top it, surveying the city through the white lenses of his mask. All had been quiet so far that night, so he was beginning to get a little itch for some action. It didn't need to be anything heavy duty; Peter still didn't enjoy dealing with the heavier stuff, like anything where a hostage was involved. Sure, he had managed to put out a few of those situations without so much as an injury, but those were still a little too much for even his young heart to handle. No, just something nice and routine, something like...
Relationships: May Parker & Peter Parker, Michelle Jones & Ned Leeds & Peter Parker, Michelle Jones & Peter Parker, Michelle Jones/Peter Parker, Ned Leeds & Peter Parker
Comments: 70
Kudos: 22





	1. Chapter 1

Peter relished in the feeling of the wind against his costume. Firing another web, he swung through the air, taking one long, deep swing after another. To think, he had only started dressing in red and blue spandex and taken on this gig 3 months ago. He was so inexperienced back then, and he knew he still had a lot to learn, but man, this whole swinging around the city thing had come in a surprisingly natural manner to him. For the longest time, he had hated heights. He would get teased anytime he went to a theme park, because he just couldn't be made to ride a roller coaster. Then, the craziest thing happened. 

Back in April, during a class field trip to the Empire State Laboratory, he had been bitten by a spider that had been irradiated, and everything changed. Suddenly, he was stronger, faster, and able to react to and perceive things in a way a normal person couldn't. Most intriguingly perhaps, he possessed the remarkable ability to climb along any surface, just like a spider! Not long after all these powers manifested in him, he decided he was going to conquer his fear of heights once and for all. It took going up, back down, and back onto a building's rooftop several times, but he finally managed to make himself jump, and next thing he knew, he had discovered he really loved leaping, swinging, and generally flying through the NYC skyline. 

Now, after a whole summer of practice, he had honed the unique art of swinging around the city via artificially created web lines. 

"Wooohooo!!!" Peter yelled, somersaulting a few times before firing another web line. Eventually, he landed atop one of his favorite destinations when it came to overlooking the city: the Chrysler building. He landed on top it, surveying the city through the white lenses of his mask. All had been quiet so far that night, so he was beginning to get a little itch for some action. It didn't need to be anything heavy duty; Peter still didn't enjoy dealing with the heavier stuff, like anything where a hostage was involved. Sure, he had managed to put out a few of those situations without so much as an injury, but those were still a little too much for even his young heart to handle. No, just something nice and routine, something like...

Suddenly, he heard an alarm. It was only for a brief second or two, but it was enough for him to have a pretty solid idea of where it was coming from. He dived off the building, falling head first through the air with his arms spread out, before firing a web to a nearby building, heading towards his destination. It only took a brief survey of the area to spot it: a group of 4 men, all in masks, breaking into...a flower shop? He webbed a portion of the fire escape just on the outside of the building, gradually lowering himself down until he was just on the outside of the now broken window. Man, these guys were sloppy. 

"Wow, guys," Peter said, immediately getting all their heads to turn his direction. "Valentine's Day is not for several months still, so I'm sorry, but you're gonna have to wait a while to find any of these on sale. 

"Spider-Man!" called one of the thugs. "Get him!" 

"Or," Peter continued, dropping down from the web he was holding onto, bracing himself for an attack, "you guys are really, really late for the previous Valentine's Day. Oh man; you guys must be in such trouble with your wives! No wonder you're so desperate to get some flowers!" 

Peter moved almost entirely on instinct, dodging punches and crowbars alike. When their biggest and strongest looking guy tried to full on body slam him, he merely stiffened up and dug his feet into the ground just a little. The man tried and tried, but was unable to move him. 

"Ah, buddy, I appreciate the hug and all, but let's give the others a turn, huh?" Peter said, forcing the man off. He then leapt into the air and shot a single, powerful burst of webbing into the man, pinning him to a nearby wall. 

"I call that one my 'impact web'; I've been working on it all summer. What do you think?" Peter asked, only to get unintelligible grunting as the man struggled pointlessly to get free. The other three came after him again all at once. He backed up near a streetlight, then leapt as they all came crashing at the spot where he once was. Firing a web just in the middle of them all, hitting the pole of the light, he launched himself off the side of a building. Arcing hard into a sideways swing, running back along the building he launched from for momentum every time he came back to it, he formed a tight web that had them all pinned to the light in seconds. 

"Alright boys, sorry I had to wrap this up so soon," Peter said, perched atop the light the men were tied to, "but I gotta get going. Hopefully you all have learned a valuable lesson though." With that, he had left what had become his customary note for the police attached to one of the crooks, which simply read: "Courtesy of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man," and swung off back in the direction of home. He had been keeping an eye on the time for the last 30 minutes or so; May would be back from her game night with her girlfriends soon, and he needed to be back at their house in Queens before she was in order to avoid suspicion. Keeping his new identity a secret from her had not been easy, but so far so good, and he wasn't about to blow it tonight. 

Plus, tomorrow was his first day of Junior Year at Midtown Tech, so he wanted to get a good night's rest anyway. 

He hopped onto a nearby train. From there, he would get off at the bridge to Queens, swinging underneath the bridge to keep out of sight. He would then make his way to the spot near their house where he had hid his street clothes, put them on over his costume, and make his way through the front door before May had even returned. Yep, he had this down pat. 

So of course he would show up, only to find that the place he had put his bag with his clothes...no longer contained his bag with his clothes. Perfect. 

"Note to self," he mumbled, "next time, put clothing bag in a HIGHER spot." 

Yep, he was still learning. However, he was still able to make his way into the window of his room with out his spider-sense (what he had come to call the sixth sense that warned him of danger) going off, meaning nobody saw him go in at least. Plus, May still wasn't home, so that was good. He thought it best not to test his luck any further that night, opting to shower and go to bed. 

Peter arrived at Midtown Tech a little early, as was his custom on the first day. He wasn't one to put a tremendous amount of organization into, well anything, except one: his locker. He liked to have his books organized in a certain way based off the order of his classes, even going as far as to invent his own little contraption that held his books at certain levels, having been unsatisfied with anything he found online for this purpose. 

He was almost done with the process when his spider-sense rang. It was very low level though, so it was likely just someone sneaking up on him. That thing clearly didn't like to take any chances; it even went off when Aunt May so much as tried to surprise him. He opted to take whatever it was; he liked the thought of keeping his alter ego a secret, after all. It turned out to be a good bump on his shoulder, actually throwing him off a little more than he had anticipated. 

"Sup, dork," came a familiar voice. Peter turned from his locker to face the girl before him. She was a little taller than him and her curly black fair was held in a bit of an erratic ponytail. 

"Sup, punk," Peter said to the girl. He stared a blank stare at her, and she matched its intensity. After a moment, both of them let the laughs they had been holding in burst from each other, coming out all at once. 

"Hey M.J," Peter said, pulling his best friend into a hug. "I missed you the last two weeks." 

"Missed you too," she replied. Most people couldn't get so much as a kind look out of one Michelle Jones, but Peter had been one of the rare people who could actually get that and even more. He still smiled to himself every time he thought of how their friendship started. They had been assigned as partners for a history project back in 7th grade. Initially, the two of them argued over everything: who would write about what, how their visual aids should look, what they were going to title their project, etc. Both of them even begged their teacher one day to reassign them to different partners or even let them do it on their own, but their teacher wouldn't budge, encouraging them to work through it. The day before the project was due, they mutually agreed to put their differences aside and sacrifice a little each. As they worked, they started finding common interests they both had, and next thing they new, they not only aced their project, but had become best friends. They had been virtually inseparable in the almost four years since. 

"How was art camp?" Peter asked as they separated. M.J. had been excited all summer about an art camp she would be going to upstate, and she didn't get excited about ANYTHING. 

"Eh, I think I hyped it up in my head too much to be honest," M.J. said, a bit of a frown on her face. 

"I'm sorry to hear that," Peter said, turning back to put the finishing touches on his locker. 

"Yeah," M.J. said, and Peter could hear her sigh even without the use of his now superhuman hearing. "We didn't even do much actual drawing; mostly discussed the history of art and the different periods of it, which was cool and all, but I expected more." 

"I presume you have already called and asked for a refund of all your hard earned money spent on it?" Peter asked, closing his locker. 

"No, not this time," M.J. said. Peter's eyes widened. 

"What!?" he said. "M.J, you're slipping. It's not like you to just let something like that go." 

"You have to pick and choose your battles, Peter," she clarified. "Besides, I did say that I actually enjoyed the history stuff a little bit." 

"History is important to know I suppose, even in art," Peter conceded. 

"Yeah," M.J. admitted, and there was a moment of silence between them before the warning bell rang, indicating 1st period was starting in 5 minutes. 

"Guess I'll see you at lunch, like always?" Peter said, throwing his backpack over his shoulder. 

"Wouldn't miss it; see you later, dork," M.J. replied, and something about the smile she gave him before turning around did weird things to his stomach. 

"Oh great," he thought to himself, "it didn't go away after all." 

Peter remembered how over this past summer, something changed in how he felt when he was around M.J. They still had their usual back and forth, but there was something...different. The way she smiled made his stomach twist in knots and his heart stop now. She wasn't saying anything in a different way than before, but it was still happening. He also found himself noticing how pretty she was. She had an understated, non-extravagant beauty that he found himself appreciating more and more out of nowhere. He saw it in the little things, like when her hair blew around in the wind, or when she gave him a knowing smirk. 

When she had gone away for the last couple weeks of summer to her art camp, Peter had told himself that if all this went away when she came back, it must've been some strange anomaly, just some weird fluke due to teenage hormonal changes or something weird like that. If they didn't well, he was going to have to face some hard truths. 

Well, they definitely didn't go away; in fact, those feelings and thoughts only seemed stronger than ever since she first approached him, which meant he had to face one hard, terrifying truth. 

He liked Michelle Jones. 

Peter finally started shuffling to class, wondering what in the world he was going to do now.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Yes sir, I'm terribly sorry about that. I'm new here, so I got a little turned around at first," the boy said. Peter noticed the new student's eyes widen as he realized he had been shaking the teacher's hand for far too long and finally pulling his hand away. The man didn't seem to mind, simply smiling at the late arrival. 
> 
> "Don't worry about it," the man assured him. "I think we can overlook it, just this once at least." The professor then gestured to Peter: "This is going to be your lab partner for the year; please, take some time to get to know each other. We will reconvene shortly." 
> 
> Peter smiled, extending his hand to shake. "I'm Peter Parker, by the way," he said, offering his friendliest smile. 
> 
> "Ned Leeds," the boy said, his own smile equally big as he shook Peter's hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter: Peter makes a new friend, he and M.J. catch up, and secret identities are not always fun.

Peter walked into his 1st period physics class and took a seat in one of the middle rows. He was never one to enjoy being in the front, but he didn't like the back either, due to it being harder to get called on. He found early on freshman year that the middle was the perfect balance of both: he could participate as much as he wanted to without being the one the teacher was eyeballing the whole time. He took out his book along with a pen and paper, eager to take notes. As class drew near, he caught himself tapping his pen against the table in an antsy fashion, and took a breath as he regained control of his right hand. He was torn; on the one hand, he needed to get M.J. off his brain if he was to be able to focus. On the other hand, there was a part of him that didn't want to stop thinking about her. The way she smiled at him, the pleasant smell of her hair he had detected when he hugged her, their friendly banter back and forth... 

The bell which indicated first period was ready to begin finally rang, and Peter turned his attention to his teacher at the front of the classroom. 

"Good morning class, I'm Professor Warren, your new physics teacher," the man said. He was of average height and build, and he spoke in a tone that was neither overly stern or pleasant, yet somehow also avoided monotony. How the man managed this Peter had no idea, but he was happy that this man at least sounded passionate whenever he spoke about the subject matter they would be covering during the year. They were only about 5 minutes into class when the man discussed who would be their lab partners for the year. "Now I won't hear any complaining about not being with your friends or anything like that; you're going to find a way to work with who you have been assigned with, and that's that," the man said, indicating that there was clearly no room for discussion. "However, I do want you all to have an opportunity to get comfortable with each other, so I want everyone to find their partner and spend some time getting to know each other a little bit." 

Peter took a look at the name of his partner: Ned Leeds. He got up, and began asking around of those he didn't know in the class, but this guy was nowhere to be found. He went up to his teacher. 

"Excuse me sir, I don't believe my partner is here," he said, showing the name of his partner to the man. Professor Warren grabbed his attendance sheet from earlier, and a sudden look of realization seemed to appear on his face. 

"I'm sorry, but it seems Mr. Leeds is not..."

The man was interrupted by a knocking on the class door. There stood a boy a little bit shorter than Peter, who was a little heavyset and of Filipino descent. 

"Sorry about this; I ended up in the wrong class earlier apparently," the boy said nervously, not quite courageous enough to come in. 

"You must be Mr. Ned Leeds then," the professor said, the sentence coming out as more of a statement than a question. This seemed to embolden the stranger, who walked in and started shaking the professor's hand profusely. 

"Yes sir, I'm terribly sorry about that. I'm new here, so I got a little turned around at first," the boy said. Peter noticed the new student's eyes widen as he realized he had been shaking the teacher's hand for far too long and finally pulling his hand away. The man didn't seem to mind, simply smiling at the late arrival. 

"Don't worry about it," the man assured him. "I think we can overlook it, just this once at least." The professor then gestured to Peter: "This is going to be your lab partner for the year; please, take some time to get to know each other. We will reconvene shortly." 

Peter smiled, extending his hand to shake. "I'm Peter Parker, by the way," he said, offering his friendliest smile. 

"Ned Leeds," the boy said, his own smile equally big as he shook Peter's hand. They moved away from the front of the class to the least crowded area they could find in the room. 

"So, you said you were new here?" Peter asked. 

"Yeah, my parents and I actually moved up here from Hawaii over the summer," Ned clarified. "My dad took a job in the city." 

"Wow," Peter said, his eyes widened. "Don't get me wrong, I love this city, but what in the world drove him to trade beaches and ocean for subways and high rises?" 

"The company he was working actually downgraded his pay, even after working there for years," Ned replied, his voice a little less enthusiastic than before. "He finally decided enough was enough, and found a job here that paid more like what he felt his experience deserved." 

"Makes sense I guess," Peter said. "So, what are you into?" 

"Science fiction and computers, really?" Ned said, shrugging. 

Peter smiled. "I think you and I will get along just fine then," he said. They continued talking for a few minutes, mostly about their favorite sci-fi movies, and Peter made sure to invite Ned to sit with him at lunch. Their teacher then called the class back together, so they parted ways in agreement to share a table later on. 

The next few classes before lunch went pretty smoothly, though he did have World History with M.J, which was more than a little distracting. Still, he thought he did a pretty good job of making it obvious to the outside world what was going on in his head. 

Lunch finally came, and he met up with Ned, leading him to their table, where M.J. and Liz Allan were already sitting. 

"M.J, Liz, this is Ned," Peter said as he and Ned stood across the table from the girls. 

"Hi Ned," Liz said, standing up and leaning over the table a bit, extending her hand forward. Peter had almost forgotten she was about eye level with him. "It's nice to meet you." 

"Nice to meet you too," Ned said, gently shaking her hand back. 

"Hi there," M.J. said, taking just enough time away from the book she was reading to greet the new kid before turning right back to it. Peter noticed Ned seemed a little off put by this, so he took a moment to try and reassure him. 

"You'll have to excuse M.J," he said, firing a glance at his best friend. "There isn't much that can take her away from her books. Don't worry though, her bark is much worse than her bite." Peter noticed M.J. shoot a glare his way, but gave just the slightest hint of a smile, and apparently that was all it took to twist his stomach into knots again. He really needed to get a grip on himself. He and Ned took their seats across from the girls, and Liz seemed to have an endless list of questions for Ned. Peter found it so amusing that M.J.'s only real girlfriend was the total opposite of her: warm, welcoming, and decently talkative, but not overly so. M.J. could be those things too, but Peter could count on one hand how many people she showed that side of herself to. The rest of the world got the girl who always had her nose in a book and her singular focus to get through high school as fast as possible. 

The rest of the school day went by pretty quickly as well. Peter met up with Ned to exchange numbers after their last class before meeting up with M.J. For almost as long as they had been friends, they regularly went to the library after school to work on homework together, and this year provided no reason for things to be any different. They walked in and found their usual table on the second floor. Peter had repeatedly joked that they might as well have their names on it, as no one else ever seemed to sit there. They got their usual drinks from the barista there (M.J. routinely made fun of him for getting plain old water as she would sip her green tea), they took out their syllabuses they had received that day. There wouldn't be much homework to actually do since it had only been the first day, so it would leave plenty of time for small talk. 

"So how's your dad doing?" Peter asked her at one point. The sudden fall of her expression seemed to give him the answer before she actually gave it. 

"Getting worse," she replied. She seemed to be making a deliberate attempt not to meet his eyes, which Peter recognized as her defense mechanism against any potential tears. "I found out before coming to school this morning that he lost his job last night."

"I'm sorry," was all Peter could find to say. For years, M.J.'s father had been more into beer than keeping a steady job; this was the 3rd job the man had lost in 5 years. Peter tried not to be too hard on the man; losing one's wife to breast cancer was certainly a traumatic thing. Still, there was a part of him that carried a little resentment at the fact that the man couldn't seem to hold himself together to provide for the family he still had. He knew M.J. was angry too, so he did his best to keep his own frustration at bay, because he knew that his being angry too wasn't what she needed. 

"Don't be," M.J. said, her deep brown eyes meeting his for the first time in the conversation. "It's certainly not your fault." 

"What are you going to do?" Peter asked.

"I don't know, Peter," she said, putting her face into her hands for a moment. "Try and get him to get another job I guess, but it's getting harder and harder. I might have to look for a job for myself to try and help out, honestly." 

"I could talk to May about something part time at the store," Peter offered. His uncle had opened up and run a small convenience store in Queens for a while. May had taken it over after...anyway, she didn't have quite the knack for it that he had, but he knew she was doing the best she could. 

"That would be nice," M.J. said, offering a light smile his way. May had been like a mother to M.J. for a while, so he knew that they would work well together. 

"What about you?" M.J. suddenly asked, changing the subject. 

"What do you mean?" Peter asked, giving her a confused look. 

"How are you holding up with, you know...?" 

Ah, yes. She was talking about Uncle Ben. The only father figure Peter really knew, who had been shot and killed back in April by a crook. Peter felt a pang in his heart as the memory of what really happened that night came flooding back into his mind. The memory of his true role in the events that happened were far from lost on him; they were what drove him to become Spider-Man, after all. 

With great power, comes great responsibility. 

"I'm doing okay, I guess," he admitted. It took a lot of his will just to look her in the eyes and hold back tears as he spoke. "Still just taking it one day at a time really." 

She reached out and grabbed his hand, giving a firm squeeze. "You'll get through this," she said. Her gaze was equal parts intense and quiet, as if she was pleading with and trying to reassure him at the same time. "You hear me?" 

"Yes," he said quietly, squeezing her hand back . "Thanks M.J." For someone so cold natured to most of the world around her, she could be surprisingly warm and reassuring when he needed it. She seemed to always know what to say, and never held back when she did. It was one of the main things Peter respected about her. Perhaps it was even one of the reasons why he...

Nope, not going to think about that right now. 

Thankfully, she released his hand and they started to go back to their schoolwork, when Peter's enhanced hearing picked up the sound of sirens heading in their general direction. He quickly started gathering his things. 

"Where are you off to in such a hurry?" M.J. asked. 

"I, uh, I just remembered that May needed me to take care of something at the house. I gotta go. Bye M.J!" he called out. 

"Oh, okay, see you tomorrow!" he heard her call out behind him. He hated lying to her, but he had told himself he would never tell anyone about his alter ego. It was too big a responsibility to put on anyone, and it could be dangerous for other people to know it. 

Once he exited the library, he quickly ducked into a nearby alley, webbing his backpack high up along the wall to his right. He quickly stripped off his clothes to reveal his red and blue suit underneath. Slipping on his mask as he came to the end of the alley, he fired two webs and launched himself over the top of the building, following the sounds of the sirens a few blocks away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These first couple chapters have been a lot of world building; the next chapter will continue to be so, but will introduce some of the villainous players in this story and get us more into the thick of it. Hope you all enjoy! 
> 
> Stay safe and healthy! 
> 
> "The sleep of a laborer is sweet..." Ecclesiastes 5:12


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I can't believe you guys had a party and didn't invite me!" he shouted as he dived into the vehicle. At least in such closed quarters, they wouldn't try shooting him for fear of shooting one of their own by accident. They all tried to dog pile him, but he tossed them aside with little effort. He fired multiple impact webs, successfully pinning them to the floor or the wall. He had to admit, this new, thicker webbing he had implemented into his web shooter's rotation was working quite nicely. There was no time to be proud though; the job was only partly done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter: a car chase, bad guys talk bad stuff, an inquisitive aunt, and a look in M.J.'s mind.

It took only a few minutes for Peter to come upon the source of it all: a hijacked truck containing a gold shipment that was headed for a local repository. When Peter came within view of it, he assessed the situation as best he could. There were two police cars chasing the hijackers, but he had no way of knowing just how many there were. One thing he knew for sure was that he needed to act quickly; the hijackers were all over the road, and if this kept up, somebody was going to get killed. He had stopped a few of these kinds of situations before, but the end result was usually very messy, even though he saved lives. He decided to try a new approach. Instead of starting from the front, he would take out anybody who was in the back first. That way, he and the driver would have some uninterrupted discussion. Arcing his web tightly, he landed on the side of the vehicle. He moved to the back, undoing the latch to the door and throwing it open, discovering no less than 4 guys within it, all armed. 

"I can't believe you guys had a party and didn't invite me!" he shouted as he dived into the vehicle. At least in such closed quarters, they wouldn't try shooting him for fear of shooting one of their own by accident. They all tried to dog pile him, but he tossed them aside with little effort. He fired multiple impact webs, successfully pinning them to the floor or the wall. He had to admit, this new, thicker webbing he had implemented into his web shooter's rotation was working quite nicely. There was no time to be proud though; the job was only partly done. 

Moving quickly, he swung by his arms out to the driver's side of the vehicle, landing right in front of it's door. The driver immediately fired two gun shots, shattering the window, but thankfully missing Peter. 

"Dude, guns to a car chase! What is this, Fast and Furious?" he said as he fired a web to knock the gun away from the man. Peter then fired two more web shots, pinning the man's hands to the wheel. 

"So, now that you're stuck here, how about you just pull over?" Peter said. It seemed logical to him, but the driver clearly had other ideas. The man drastically rotated the steering wheel, sending the side of the vehicle directly towards a nearby building. 

Unsure of his next move, Peter did the only thing he could think of: he jumped down, right in front of the wall the vehicle was headed towards. Stiffening every muscle in his body, he braced himself to catch a vehicle coming at him at 70 mph. 

Smash! 

The vehicle came to a dead stop. Peter's superhuman strength had done the job, but now he was hurting all over. It seemed like every muscle in his body had jostled on impact, and they were all practically screaming at him. He took a moment to lean against the hood of the vehicle as an officer came to take care of the man in the driver's seat. 

"You okay?" the officer asked. 

"I'll be fine. My insides hate me right now, but they'll get over it," Peter replied, waving a dismissive hand to emphasize that last point. 

"Well, next time leave it to the paid professionals, and maybe you won't have to deal with that," the officer said as he finished extracting the driver from the webs that bound him. 

"You're welcome," Peter replied. He really hoped it didn't come out as upset as he felt internally. Ever since he first became Spider-Man, most of the cops had been very dismissive of him. Some were actually decent towards him and seemed appreciative of his help, but the majority were more like this. It was at times like these that he would take a moment and force himself to remember that he didn't get into this for praise or accolades, but because he felt he had a responsibility to use his powers wisely. It was a lesson he had learned the hard way.

Peter finally forced himself off the vehicle, standing on his own two feet. His muscles were still a bit weak, but they had recovered at least enough for him to make his exit. He fired a web onto a nearby building and yanked himself into the air. He hated to cut his patrol a bit short, but if he got into another situation like the one he just came from, it might not turn out nearly as well. 

James Wesley stood in the elevator by himself, awaiting his arrival to the top floor. He knew his employer was not likely to take this most recent development well, but it was something that had to be addressed. This "Spider-Man," whoever he was, was at first nothing more than a rumor. He had personally overseen some of the...questioning of the men who regularly spent their time out in the field and claim to have seen this red and blue character. Usually, they would break before a single hit had been applied. Some were more stubborn, requiring more intense questioning. However, everyone would eventually fess up and give up whatever the truth really was. Yet, the men who he had questioned about Spider-Man never once changed their story. No matter how rough it got for them, they maintained that they were sincere in what they saw. 

Then, about a month ago, the local news started reporting on this new character. Amateur footage was caught of him swinging on some kind of line, catching cars and leaving criminals tied up for the police. Now, it could no longer be denied. His boss had initially insisted on increasing security during any "transactions," but it had made no difference. Whoever this guy was, he was fast, strong, and a whole lot tougher than he looked in that ridiculous spider themed costume. Today, however, he had a feeling something was about to change. 

The elevator doors dinged as they opened up, and Wesley, as his boss liked to call him, walked out, heading directly towards the main office. He was one of the privileged few who got to walk into this office without an invite; that's what happens when you are the boss's number 1 guy. However, this time he had been summoned, so he knew it was of particular urgency. When he came to the office, he found the door was open, so he stepped in, closing the door behind him. By now, he knew that a summoning meant this was going to be a private conversation. He took a few more steps in, still several feet away from his employer. The large man was staring out the window into the city. 

"Was it Spider-Man again?" his boss said. The man spoke in a calm and composed manner, but Wesley could tell he was seething just beneath the surface. 

"Yes sir," Wesley replied in an even tone. His employer then turned around to face him. The first time he had seen Wilson Fisk, he honestly thought the man was out of shape. He was a little over six feet and two inches tall, but weighed well over 400 pounds. However, early on in his employment, he watched as his boss made an example of two men who had tried to hold on a bit too much of a cut. Mr. Fisk had challenged them to a fight; he said that if the two of those men could beat him, then they deserved not only that extra cut, but to be running the operation. The men he challenged were also new, and thought it would be easy. 

They were very wrong. Wesley watched in awe as Mr. Fisk moved with both the speed of a cat and the strength of a raging bull, making short work of those men, and in front of many other workers, no less. From that moment on, Wesley squashed any thought he had of ever trying to one up Mr. Fisk. He sought to become the most loyal employee he could, and Mr. Fisk had recognized and rewarded that effort. 

"Wesley," Mr. Fisk said, turning around in his direction and finally facing him, "I think I've been going about this all wrong." 

"What do you mean, sir?" Wesley asked. 

"See, I thought that adding more men would be the solution to our little bug problem," Mr. Fisk said, coming out from behind his desk and walking towards Wesley. When he spoke again, Wesley had to look up just a little to meet his boss in the eye. "But maybe what I really need is to find the right man." 

"Who would you like for me to bring in, Mr. Fisk?" Wesley asked, many conversations of the like before this helping in his anticipation of what his boss was thinking. 

"Wesley, do you remember the man in the cowboy hat we brought in to oversee the microchip job last year?" Mr. Fisk asked. 

"Montana was his name, I believe," Wesley replied. 

"Bring him to me," Mr. Fisk said, letting a little more of his obvious frustration out in his words. "I have an upgrade for him that might do just the trick in eradicating our bug problem." 

"I'll get on it right away sir," Wesley replied fervently. "He'll be here in the next 24 hours." 

Peter was grateful he had learned from his past mistakes; this time his backpack had been right where he left it, so he'd have clothes to change into. By now, his strength was mostly recovered, but he still thought it best to go home. He still hadn't completely gauged how powerful his healing factor was, so he figured it was best to be on the safe side. Taking the more civilian way, he took a bus back to Queens, and got off at a stop that was only two blocks from his house. Within a matter of minutes, he was coming through the door. 

"Hey Peter!" he heard his aunt call from the kitchen. 

"Hey May," he said in surprise as he set his backpack down by the couch in the living room. He then walked into the kitchen to meet his aunt. "You're home early from the store." 

"I ended up getting somebody to handle the evening shift," May replied. Ever since May opted to take over the small convenience store Ben had managed for years before he died, she had struggled to keep up with it. Peter had watched as she read and read, learning as many tools of the trade in order to keep it up and running, but she just didn't have a knack for business. Uncle Ben hadn't been the best businessman either, but he just had an understanding of how to provide what the community needed. 

"That's good, right?" Peter said, letting himself sound a little optimistic. "Maybe even a sign of the future?" 

"I'd like to think that, Peter," May replied, the bun her brown hair had been tied into getting looser by the minute as she moved quickly around the kitchen. For someone who was actually a pretty good cook, May often found herself trying to juggle too many things at once in the kitchen as much as life. "But it took the promise of double time to get Rachel to come in and oversee the evening shift, and I can't afford to do that too many more times." 

"Yeah," Peter said, and he glanced down towards the small round table that served as the place he and May ate. In the center were numerous pieces of mail. Peter glanced through a few of them: gas bill, AC bill, electric...all of them coming down to the wire. 

"So, ready for some Italian for dinner?" May asked, and Peter picked up the bills and set them onto the counter to make room for everything, trying not to dwell on them too much as he helped May set the table. 

"How was your first day of Junior year?" May asked as soon as they sat down. 

"Oh, not too bad," Peter said, twirling his fork in his pasta. "My lab partner in physics is a new kid from Hawaii named Ned; he seems pretty cool." 

"Cool," May replied. "You should have him over some time; I'd love to meet him." 

"Yeah, that'd be cool," Peter said, trying to speak despite having a lot of spaghetti in his mouth. 

"Peter," May said, giving him a pointed look. He finally managed to swallow the huge bite. 

"Sorry May," he said. It had been a bit harder to mind his manners since his metabolism increased so greatly in the wake of the bite. He was going to have to start smuggling snacks into school somehow, or his appetite was going to continue to overtake him. 

"Anyway," he continued, his mouth now free again, "Flash didn't really give me much grief, but it's only the first day. M.J. and I have a few classes together, including our last one, so that's nice." 

"How did she enjoy her art camp?" May asked AFTER swallowing her bite of food. 

"She said it was just okay; it sounded like it wasn't quite advertised properly." 

"So when are you asking her out?" 

Peter gagged at those words, struggling to keep in his most recent bite of food. "What makes you ask that?" he asked a little incredulously. 

"Oh come on, Peter; you don't think I haven't noticed how you all acted differently around each other this summer?" she replied. Why was she so good at noticing these things??

"I have no idea what you're talking about," he said, deciding to play dumb as he took another bite. 

"Fine, you play it that way for now," May said. They talked about various other school and work related things, then Peter went upstairs to work on what little homework he had left. It was really just some reading for a couple classes that he hadn't gotten to earlier, but before he could get too deep into it, he got a text from M.J. 

"Everything okay with May? You left in kind of a hurry." 

Ugh, speaking of someone else who noticed everything. He thought for a couple of minutes on what the proper response should be before answering back. 

"Yeah, just realized I needed to get some fabric for her latest sewing project." He hit send, hoping that would satisfy her. 

"Yeah, just realized I needed to get some fabric for her latest sewing project." 

M.J. read Peter's text, then looked up to the wall next to her bed. On the one hand, it made sense; May did like to sew from time to time, so it wouldn't be too unusual. Still, there was something in Peter's body language that conveyed an urgency far greater than what a simple trip to a craft store demanded. His body had tensed up and there was a strong, purposeful look in those big brown eyes of his...okay, she was getting confused again. 

Ever since seeing Peter at school that morning, her head had been flooded with the thought of him ever since. It had started back in the summer; there was something about the way he spoke to her. Maybe it was kindness, maybe it was the encouraging things he would say that she pretended didn't mean much, even though they both knew they did. Whatever it was, she had hoped the art camp would be a good getaway, but instead, she had found herself missing him. If that dumb camp hadn't been so boring, it might have been easier to get Peter Parker out of her head. Instead, she found herself missing him terribly. 

She was getting ahead of herself. What was so wrong with that anyway? They had been best friends for almost four years now; it wasn't unusual for best friends to miss each other. 

However, the added thought that maybe he was keeping something from her only exacerbated the matter in her mind. Even best friends could keep secrets, right? Well, not her and him; the two of them had ALWAYS told each other EVERYTHING. It had taken a while, but she had shared so much of what was going on in her head with him, and he had reciprocated. Yet, as the summer had gotten underway, Peter started getting weirdly distant. Most of the time he was there, present and accounted for in both body and mind. However, he had a few times where he did this exact thing: get up in a hurry, offer a reason for his departure, and leave. It was so unlike him to keep things from her. 

It probably had to do with his uncle. It had taken Peter a while to even come out of his room. When he did, they would mostly sit in silence, which M.J. usually didn't mind, but she knew what this silence was about, and she hated it. Peter was crushed; the man he had known as basically his father had been taken from him. Ben had been like a father to her too, but she knew it wasn't even worth comparing her loss to Peter's. 

This was all just getting too confusing now. She reasoned that, if Peter had something he needed to tell her, it would be in his own good time, and that was that. She promptly typed out a message in response to Peter's message: 

"Cool." 

She then promptly went back to her books, trying to drown her mind in European history as she tried not to think of one Peter Parker.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all liked it! 
> 
> Stay safe and healthy everyone! 
> 
> "Above all else..." Proverbs 4:23


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter quickly threw his shirt on over the top half of his Spider-Man suit just before he came running out of the alley next to school. Everything had gone just fine that morning at first: he actually woke up to his FIRST alarm for a change, got ready and even got his bus on time. It was when he got off the bus that, of course, he caught sight of what looked like the beginnings of a mugging. He had made a quick change and scouted the situation from an overhead rooftop, and a mugging was exactly what it was indeed. He had put a stop to it quickly, checked on the woman, and still had time to make it. Then, while swinging towards school, he caught sight of a robbery in progress at a local convenience store. Needless to say, stopping that as well had set him back even further, but he could still make it if he....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter: Peter's late for school, he and Ned's young new friendship continues to grow, sacrifices must be made, and Fisk sets a plan in motion to exterminate the pest in his business.

Peter quickly threw his shirt on over the top half of his Spider-Man suit just before he came running out of the alley next to school. Everything had gone just fine that morning at first: he actually woke up to his FIRST alarm for a change, got ready and even got his bus on time. It was when he got off the bus that, of course, he caught sight of what looked like the beginnings of a mugging. He had made a quick change and scouted the situation from an overhead rooftop, and a mugging was exactly what it was indeed. He had put a stop to it quickly, checked on the woman, and still had time to make it. Then, while swinging towards school, he caught sight of a robbery in progress at a local convenience store. Needless to say, stopping that as well had set him back even further, but he could still make it if he....

The bell signifying first period had begun crushed those hopes. He had even made it to the base of the stairs that lead to the front doors too!

Peter lowered his head and sighed. He shuffled his way up the stairs and into school, upset that the famed Parker luck had struck again. When he made his way into class, the teacher only gave him a brief look before continuing with his lecture. Peter didn't have a reputation through his first two years of high school for being late, but he was nervous about what might happen if these sort of incidents became a habit. He walked over and took a seat next to Ned, plopping his backpack down to the side. 

"Hey man," he heard Ned whisper next to him, "you didn't have to do that." 

"Do what?" Peter asked in an equally hushed voice, turning to Ned. 

"Show up late to make me feel better," Ned said, smiling. 

"Oh whatever dude," Peter said, letting out a mild chuckle and flashing a smile of his own as he turned his attention back to his teacher. After a little while, the class was put back in their respective lab pairings and were given their first little exercise to see how well they worked together. 

"So, if it wasn't to make me feel better, which I know deep down it was," Ned said, nudging Peter a little as they worked on their little exercise together, "why were you late?" 

"Bus broke down," Peter said, not bothering to look at Ned. Starting a friendship based on lies was not exactly ideal, but Peter was determined not to let anybody in on his secret if he could help it. Ned seemed nice and all, but he wasn't willing to risk it. Even if it wasn't such dangerous knowledge, his new classmate seemed like the type who might accidentally out him from sheer excitement from meeting a superhero. 

"That's cool," Ned said, nodding his head. 

"Do they even have buses in Hawaii?" Peter said. 

"Some, but obviously not nearly as popular as here," Ned said. "My mom drove me to school mostly anyway." 

"I'll bet that was nice," Peter said. Both of his parents had died when he was very little, but every once in a while, something like this would remind him of how he had never really known them. 

"Oh, I'm sorry," Ned said, his voice sounding very sympathetic all of a sudden. "I forgot about what you told me about your parents." 

"It's okay," Peter said, stopping their work for a moment and turning to face Ned. "It happened a long time ago. Sure it still hurts sometimes, but I still have May." 

"She sounds pretty great from how you described her the other day," Ned said. 

"May's the best, at least in my extremely biased opinion," Peter said, turning back to their work. "Your parents sounded pretty cool too."

"Yeah, they are," Ned said, his voice having a very matter of fact manner to it. "Dad's busy with work, but he always makes time for my mom and I." 

They continued talking until the end of the class, and as they walked out, Ned spoke up again. 

"You know there's something we're going to have to settle right?" 

Peter looked at him, very confused. "What's that?" he asked. 

"Who is going to go to who's place first?" Ned said. 

Peter reached in his pocket and pulled out a quarter. "How about we flip for it? That way, we can't say there was any bias in the decision," he reasoned. 

"Sounds good to me," Ned replied. "So, if it's heads, we go to your place; tails, to mine." 

"Works for me," Peter said, flipping the coin up into the air with a flick of his finger. He grabbed on its descent, quickly putting it on top of his left hand. He took away the right one to reveal that it was indeed heads. 

"Alright, sounds like it's settled," Ned said. 

"I'll have to check with May to make sure it's alright, but I don't see why it wouldn't be," Peter said, stuffing the coin back into his pocket. "How about this Friday night?" 

"Sounds good to me," Ned said. 

At lunch, Peter sat with M.J, Liz and Ned again. It was pretty quiet at first, before Liz spoke up: "So, you guys excited for Academic Decathlon tryouts next week?" 

Peter's collapsed his face in his hands. He couldn't believe he forgot about the fact that this was the first year that Midtown was going to have an Academic Decathlon team, and he was going to have to miss it. 

"What's that about?" M.J. asked in her traditional snarky best friend way. 

"I'm not going to be able to try out for the team this year," he replied, is face dejected. 

"I'm sorry, what?" M.J. asked. Peter looked up and saw her face as a mix of shock and complete disbelief in his words. "Weren't you the guy who wouldn't shut up about the fact that our school was finally going to have a team last year, and how you couldn't wait?" she added. 

"I just...I can't," he said. "I have too much going on." 

"Like what?" Liz asked, her arms crossed. "You'd be such a valuable asset to the team, Peter. They'd be crazy not to have you. Plus, it looks good on college applications, which we all have to start thinking about one of these days." 

"I know, Liz, it's just..." He wasn't sure how to finish his sentence. Really, there were two reasons in his head why he felt he couldn't. The first one was obvious and wore red and blue spandex everywhere, but he certainly couldn't tell them about that. However, he was also thinking of the bills he saw on the table last night. Like M.J. had mentioned in her situation, he might have to get a job in order to help pay the bills. He was the man of the house now after all, a fact which hadn't really hit him until he saw that stack of papers the previous evening. However, he was too embarrassed, frustrated, and uncertain about the whole thing to share that with the group either. 

"Like I said, I have too much going on," he finally said. He felt like he had so many conflicting emotions all of a sudden: embarrassment at his situation, anger that he felt like he couldn't be completely honest with his friends, and even a little jealousy perhaps that at least two at the table would likely be able to partake in something he had really, really wanted. He collected his lunch tray and got up from his seat. He had already eaten his food, so he quickly disposed of his trash, setting the tray in its place, and walked out of the cafeteria. 

He was almost to his locker when he heard someone call out to get his attention. 

"Peter, wait up!" came M.J.'s voice. He turned around to face her as she came right up to him. "Are you okay?"

M.J. was the snarkiest person he had ever met, but it was moments like this that her kind, caring heart truly shined through. If he was honest, it was the biggest reason why he liked her, but it was also the thing that was destroying him on the inside. He wanted to tell her everything; about being Spider-Man, about the thrill of swinging at the top of the city, about the satisfaction of helping so many people, but also the burden he felt, always feeling as though the world was on his shoulders, and if he shirked his responsibility, as he had once before, it all might collapse. 

"No, not really M.J," he admitted. That part he could at least share. 

"Talk to me; what's going on?" she said, her dark eyes piercing through his own. It was like she was mining down to his very soul, looking for answers. He decided to share some of the truth with her. 

"I saw a ton of bills on the kitchen table last night," he said. "I know May doesn't want me to worry, so she won't admit how bad it really is, but...let's just say you might not be the only one who has to get a job to help out." 

"I'm sorry you've found yourself in that situation too," she said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "We're both going to get through this though," she added before dropping her arm back down to her side. 

"I know, but I feel guilty even comparing the two," he said. 

"Why?" M.J. asked, shaking her head in confusion.

"Because at least in my case, I have an adult in the home that is actually out there, working herself to death, trying her best," Peter said, beginning to use greater hand gestures in his frustration. "It's not fair of me to compare our situations when you basically have to do everything for two at your house these days." 

"Hey," she said, taking a couple small steps closer to him. The look she was giving him carried both determination and sympathy in equal measure, and the intensity of it cause Peter's heart to skip a beat. "You don't ever have to feel guilty for talking to me. I know I've never been the best at this whole best friends encourage and comfort each other thing, but I'm always willing to listen." 

Peter shook his head. "You're crazy," he said. 

"Why?" M.J. asked, looking almost a little offended. 

"Because you're so very, very wrong: you are the best friend I ever could have asked for," he said. He pulled her into a hug, and she seemed to melt into it just as much as he did. As he took in the warmth of his embrace, he suddenly thought of something: what if he told her how he recently started feeling about her, but she didn't feel the same way? M.J.'s friendship had gotten him through so much, especially after Ben's death. If he lost that...

"You know I'm not planning on trying out for decathlon either," she said, shaking him from his thoughts. They finally pulled away from each other. "So, you know, you're not the only one who real life responsibilities are getting in the way of stuff they want to do." 

"Good thing I don't have to worry about that," came a most unwelcome voice. Peter rolled his eyes as none other than Flash Thompson came walking up beside them. He hadn't even realized that lunch was ending and people were starting to come back to their lockers, but still, of all the people that had to show up...

"So sad to hear your not trying out for academic decathlon, Peter," Flash continued. "Don't worry though, I will be more than happy to be the one to lead the team to a national championship in our first year." 

Every word that came out of Flash's mouth made Peter just want to punch him in the teeth. For years now, Flash had been a huge thorn in his side constantly flaunting his family's social status and wealth in Peter's face. He and Flash were about the same size, but somehow the guy knew how to make him feel small. However, now that Peter had his powers, he felt like he was ready to send Flash through the wall. He really could, after all, but he knew he needed to be the bigger man here, as he had always tried to do. 

"Back off, Flash," M.J. spat back. "We both know that, unlike Peter or myself, you actually need the boost being on the team would give when colleges start looking at us." 

For just a moment, Flash looked just a little taken aback by M.J.'s retort, but he quickly recovered, as always. 

"I'll have you know, M.J, that this year is going to be different," he said, his head held high. "I'm finally going to have the respect of the teachers, and actually get the grades I deserve." 

Peter was about to open his mouth to say something, when his eyes caught sight of the huge guy that came behind Flash and put his hands on his shoulders. Peter had to hold back a chuckle as Flash's eyes grew huge. 

"Flash, the day you get respect from the teachers in this place will be the day when I become a dancer instead of a football player," came the deep voice of one Randy Robertson. 

"Just wait, Randy," Flash said, finally regaining some of his composure, but still not turning to look the six foot five starting lineman in the eyes. "I'll prove you all wrong." After that, Flash quickly scurried off. 

"Thanks Rand," Peter said. He and Randy had never really been friends, but he always respected how the guy always stood up for people. 

"No problem," Randy said, smiling. The dude was huge, but his smile had Peter convinced that he wouldn't hurt a fly. "Actually Peter, I was coming to see you. I was wondering if you could help me out." 

Peter looked a little surprised. "What's up?" he asked. 

"I struggled keeping my grades where they needed to be last year," Randy admitted. "My dad suggested I get a tutor, at least to start the year. Everyone in school knows you've got the biggest brain in the place; you think you could help me out?" 

Honestly, Peter was humbled. The fact that a guy who was likely to play in the NFL one day was asking HIM for help with anything was incredible. 

"Yeah man, absolutely," Peter said. 

"Awesome," Randy said, and the look of relief on his face didn't go unnoticed by Peter. "Speaking of class, I better get to my next one. Talk later after school?" 

"Absolutely," Peter said. As Randy walked off, he met M.J.'s eyes again. 

"You know, I'm not sure you'll ever land a job," she said. 

Peter's expression fell. "Why is that?" he asked. 

"You're so nice, you'd help anybody out for free," she said, and the smile in her face seemed almost like she was proud of him. 

"Yeah, I guess I'll have to work on that," he said. 

Wesley walked into Mr. Fisk's office, Montana at his side. The man was dressed in his usual cowboy attire, complete with a hat and everything. Their boss turned around to greet them. 

"Montana," Fisk said, his hulking form walking towards them. "Thank you for coming back into town on such short notice." He offered his massive hand to shake, and Montana took it without hesitation. 

"Well, the beach was never my thing anyway," Montana said. "Ol' Wes here says that the Spider-Man is actually real?" 

"Too real, I'm afraid," Fisk said, turning and walking back towards his desk. Wesley and Montana both followed. "He has grown to be a plague on our operation. Some of our buyers are even getting nervous, because no one has stood a chance against him yet."

"Alright, what do you need from me, boss?" Montana asked, clasping his hands on his jacket. 

"You have the highest success rate in overseeing transactions, so I want you to handle one on the docks tonight in the Upper West Side," Fisk answered. 

"And say I do run across this spider problem," Montana said. "I presume I'm not just gonna lasso him into submission." 

"No, you're going to exterminate him," Fisk said, opening up a large briefcase on his desk. "With this." Inside the case was a full body suit that also included gauntlets to be worn on one's hands. 

"It's a special suit that harnesses energy to generate shock waves powerful enough to bring down buildings," Wesley explained. "The suit itself will protect you from being harmed by those same blasts." 

"Alright," Montana said, still examining the suit. "Well, I better go test it out. Can't go into fight without knowing how to wield your weapon." 

"Very good," Fisk said, closing the case and handing it to Montana. Wesley was escorting him out when Fisk spoke up again.

"And Montana, don't underestimate him. We still don't know the limits of what he can do," Fisk warned. 

"Don't worry boss," Montana said, turning his head back towards Fisk. "Simple truth is, if a man's a man, he honors his responsibilities. The bug is now one of mine, so it'll get done."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. Action scenes are fun, but getting into Peter's head is my favorite thing to write about. I hope you all liked it! 
> 
> Stay safe and healthy out there! 
> 
> "David said to the Philistine, 'You come against me with sword and spear and javelin'..." 1 Samuel 17


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Hey boys, what you got there?" he asked. The men turned around and tried to draw their guns, but Peter snatched them from their hands as they were in mid-draw, crushing them with his gloved hands. 
> 
> "See, here's what I don't understand," he said, grabbing the two men and tossing them into two other men who were rushing towards him. "You guys go through all this trouble to bring this stuff in, when it would be so much easier, and less illegal for that matter, to..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter: a tutoring session, a surprising job offer, and a new threat.

After school, Peter met up with Randy to discuss their tutoring arrangement. The latter insisted on getting started as soon as possible, so Peter gave him his number so that he could text the address to him. Conveniently, Randy ended up living close to a public library, so Peter said he would head there to do his homework for a while, and agreed to meet at Randy's house once he got home from practice. About two and a half hours later, Peter found himself walking up to a modest two story home in Harlem. It was nothing fancy, but it was a little bigger than what he and May had. He rang the doorbell and waited patiently for a few minutes. After a moment, an woman answered the door. 

"You must be Peter," the lady said, offering Peter a welcoming smile. "I'm Randy's mother, Joanna." She took a step outside and extended a hand to Peter, who extended his own to shake it. 

"It's nice to meet you ma'am," Peter replied. May had made sure he NEVER forgot his manners when a guest at someone's home. "Thank you so much for your hospitality." 

"We should be thanking you actually; I can't tell you how relieved Randy was when he told us you agreed to help him out," Mrs. Robertson said. "Come on in; my son likes to use all the hot water as soon as he comes home from practice, but he should be out soon." 

Peter followed her inside, finding himself glancing around the living room as Mrs. Robertson lead him into the kitchen. There were a decent amount of furnishings, but the thing he noticed the most in his brief survey was that there were family pictures everywhere. Whether it was over the fireplace, on a desk, or even a couple hanging on the wall, Randy and his parents could be seen from almost any angle in the room. Peter caught his heart swelling a little bit at this sight as all of this reminded him of how he had lost his parents at such a young age. However, it also filled him with thankfulness, because he had pictures of them too, and of Ben, who he missed dearly as well. 

"Would you like a snack or something to drink?" Mrs. Robertson asked, drawing Peter's attention back to the moment. 

"Sure," Peter replied. He didn't like taking advantage of people's hospitality, but since he was still trying to figure out how to deal with his body's significant change in metabolism, he would take almost any excuse to eat something. "A granola bar or something would be fine, and just some water to drink please." 

Peter got out his books as Mrs. Robertson brought him his requested snack and drink. He made sure to temper himself in how quickly he ate the granola bar, but still finished it very quickly. Still, even a small snack was refreshing, and of course, he made sure to thank Mrs. Robertson for it just as Randy finally came down. 

"Sorry about that, Peter," Randy said as he pulled up a seat to his house guest's right. "The field was still muddy from the rain the other day, so it took a while to get all the mud out. I can't tell you how much I appreciate this though." 

"It's not problem Rand," Peter said. "So, where do you want to start?" 

For the next half hour, they covered the homework in a couple of science classes, then it finally came time for Algebra 2. 

"Ugh, I've never understood why anyone would mix the alphabet with math," Randy complained as Peter opened up the book. "It just makes things so much more difficult." 

"Honestly, I find that the most common mistake that can be made is overthinking it," Peter offered, trying to ease his classmate's concerns. "I do agree that they certainly try their best to make it confusing though." 

Peter then heard the front door open and close behind him, and soon they were joined by someone else. 

"Hey dad," Randy said, standing to give his father a brief hug, before turning to introduce the man to the guest in his house. "This is Peter Parker, the guy from my class I told you about." 

"Ah yes, Midtown's resident genius," Mr. Robertson said, extending his hand and giving Peter a firm but friendly handshake. 

"Well, I don't know about all that," Peter said as he pulled his hand away, his cheeks a little bit flushed of embarrassment. He never did care for all the attention being on him. 

"Well, if you're half as smart as Randy says you are, he definitely made the right choice in who to reach out to for help," the man said before excusing himself and exiting the room. 

"Anyway, where were we?" Peter asked. 

"Something about how you agreed with me that the people who wrote this book are trying to make it hard on us," Randy said. 

"Yes, right," Peter said as they both sat back down in their spots. "The big thing I will tell you is that you probably won't learn this stuff the same way I did, because people process this stuff differently. The trick will be finding how you best process it, and after that, you probably won't even need my help." 

"Alright then," Randy said, seemingly resigned to whatever Peter had to offer. "Lead the way, Einstein." Peter let out a mild chuckle at the use of the famed genius' name being applied to him. They spent about 45 minutes going over some of the initial lessons. By the end, Randy's confidence appeared to go up a fair amount, even though it had only been their first session. 

"Well, thanks a lot Peter," Randy said as they both stood up from the table. "Again, I can't tell you how much I appreciate this." 

"Not a problem at all, Rand," Peter replied, offering a fist bump. They agreed to meet up a couple times a week, and just as Peter had turned to head out, he heard a commotion coming from the other room. Curious, he stepped forward to see Mr. Robertson fiddling with his desktop computer in a small office room. 

"Piece of junk," the man mumbled under his breath, thought it didn't go unnoticed by Peter thanks to his super hearing. 

"Would you like me to take a look at that sir?" Peter asked, trying to sound as polite as possible. "I'm pretty good with computers." 

"Sure, be my guest," Mr. Robertson said, gesturing in defeat to the device on his desk. "I can't seem to turn it on for anything." 

Peter walked over to the computer, peering behind it to the cables behind. He fiddled around with some of the cables for a moment, then stepped back again. 

"Try it now," Peter said. Mr. Robertson went to turn it on, and sure enough, the once dark screen lit up almost instantly. Mr. Robertson turned to Peter, his eyes wide in amazement, as if Peter had done something miraculous. 

"How'd you do that?" the man asked, seemingly at a loss. "I've been dealing with this ever since I got this thing." 

"There were a couple connections back there; once I straightened that out, it was fine," Peter explained, as if it was a simple thing. Mr. Robertson's eyes seemed to have something behind them, as if an idea was churning in his mind. 

"Tell me, Peter, what else do you know about computers and technology?" the man asked. It was clear the man had some kind of particular interest, though Peter couldn't peg what it was. 

"I know a fair amount," Peter replied, trying to be modest. "I've messed around with building my own computers and stuff from time to time, so I've mostly just picked up stuff here and there." 

"I'm sorry, you build computers?" Mr. Robertson said, his expression one almost bordering shock. "Like, just for fun?" 

"Y-yeah?" Peter answered, shrugging. There was a pause, before the Randy's dad finally spoke up again. 

"Peter, you wouldn't happen to be looking for a job, would you?" Mr. Robertson suddenly blurted out, catching Peter by surprise. 

"I've been thinking about it a little, yeah," Peter said. Actually, he'd been thinking about it a lot just in the last twenty four hours, but the sudden nature of this offer was throwing him off guard. 

"We've been looking into a part-time tech position at the Bugle," Mr. Robertson explained. "It just might be something that fits your skill set. If you're interested, drop by the Bugle offices tomorrow afternoon and we'll talk." 

"Thank you sir," Peter replied before saying his goodbyes and seeing himself out. Wow, did he just get offered a job? Maybe it really was like they say about it who you know and stuff. 

Once he had changed into his Spider-Man suit and had some time to think it over while on patrol, he had to admit he had some reservations about the job offer, mainly in the fact that the Bugle's editor, J. Jonah Jameson, had gone out of its way to absolutely slam his work as Spider-Man. Peter couldn't figure out why this was, especially because the Bugle didn't have a huge track record for printing such slanderous, opinionated material. The paper actually had a good reputation as far as he'd ever heard in terms of quality journalism, so why had that changed because of him? 

His thoughts were interrupted when he spotted a shady looking group of guys conducting some business near the docs. Even in his short period of time in his new role, Peter had already started to pick up on what times and locations illegal activities would go down in, and until he finished his plan for installing a radio link in his mask, this knowledge was all he had to go off of. 

He perched himself a top a building nearby, still high enough to be out of sight, but close enough where his enhanced vision and hearing could pick up what they were talking about. When he saw them open a crate containing a massive amount of military grade weaponry, that was all he needed. Springing into action, he dove off the building, firing a web. Arcing it tightly, he landed gracefully right behind the two men at the crate. 

"Hey boys, what you got there?" he asked. The men turned around and tried to draw their guns, but Peter snatched them from their hands as they were in mid-draw, crushing them with his gloved hands. 

"See, here's what I don't understand," he said, grabbing the two men and tossing them into two other men who were rushing towards him. "You guys go through all this trouble to bring this stuff in, when it would be so much easier, and less illegal for that matter, to..." 

Peter's wisecrack was interrupted by his spider-sense going crazy. As he leapt backwards, he heard a loud rumble coming from his right, and he landed just in time to see what looked like some kind of concussive blast glide harmlessly over the water. He turned his head quickly towards the direction the blast came from, and quickly deduced that the man in the mostly yellow outfit with some kind of gauntlets on his hands was the one who fired it. 

"Who exactly are you supposed to be, Oven Mit Man?" Peter asked sarcastically as he stood up from his crouched position. "Oh no, definitely The Cushion. Yeah, that's much better." 

"Actually, I was thinking maybe, Shocker," the man said in a thick western accent, unleashing another blast. Peter did a couple back flips and landed on an nearby vehicle, but his adversary must've anticipated this. As soon as Peter landed, another blast send the truck, and him, flying back. Peter fired two webs, yanking himself back towards the fray. 

"I have to admit, you're pretty spry there son, but even you gotta wear down eventually," Shocker said, firing yet another blast. 

"So do you," Peter challenged, leaping forward this time, avoiding the blast. He repeatedly maneuvered around his enemy's attacks until he got close enough were he could finally land a hit. Taking advantage, Peter lunged forward, sending it a kick which should've had enough force to send the man to the ground a few feet away. Instead, it was Peter who found himself hitting the ground, pretty hard at that. 

"Well, how about that," Peter heard his enemy gloat before he was suddenly being picked up. "Guess the boss was right; this suit really does protect me from more than just it's own abilities." With that, Shocker fired a blast straight into Peter's chest a point blank range. Peter went flying back, smashing into the wall of a nearby port building so hard that he went straight through it and into the small office. He groaned as he forced his way back to his feet, his insides feeling like they had been jostled around. It was the strangest feeling he ever had, and that was including the feeling he had after he got bitten. 

"Still alive, I see." Peter turned right as he finished standing up to see Shocker standing just a few feet away. "Well, I reckon one more at close range should remedy that situation." 

The man then raised his gauntlets, the blast building quickly. Peter was about to dodge to the left, when out of the corner of his eye he saw a dock worker he hadn't noticed before just standing there. He stopped himself from jumping that way, but couldn't redirect himself the other way in time, and ended up taking another blast to the chest. This was one was much stronger too, having come from both gauntlets, and Peter shot out through another wall out towards the water. His senses were all jumbled up from the blast, so he couldn't concentrate enough to try and fire a web anywhere, and he ended up hitting the water back first. For a few moments, Peter floated about 10 feet beneath the surface. He then recomposed himself, and started to swim for the underside of a dock area. His body felt like it had been stomped on by a hundred mules, but forced his way back up, taking a gasp of air as he reached the underside of the dock, sticking his fingers to it to hold himself in place. Taking a moment to gather himself, he finally climbed from the underside to the top side of the dock, but by the time he made it back to the scene of the initial conflict, everyone and everything had cleared out. 

"Great," Peter lamented, finally allowing himself to drop down and clutch his side, which was one of the many places that was hurting at the moment. 

"Just great."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys are enjoying this! 
> 
> Stay safe and healthy out there! 
> 
> "If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness..." Acts 4:8-10


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter crawled into the window of his bedroom, the thought of just crashing onto the bed overwhelming. He managed to contain himself though; May had told him that she would be out working late, so it would still be a little bit before she was home, but crashing with his suit still on was a no go. His muscles ached as he pulled his suit from his body, discarding it in it's usual place in the deep, hidden corner of his closet. He grabbed his pajamas and went straight to the shower. The hot water felt so refreshing as he let it cascade over his body, soothing his hurting muscles. He lost track of time as his mind wondered back to the fight. The biggest thing he kept thinking of was the fact that he couldn't even hit Shocker without getting blasted back. The man had an advantage in both defense and offense, but Ben and May Parker didn't raise a quitter. Peter was nowhere close to giving up, but he was at a loss. That suit and tech were unlike anything he'd encountered to this point. What was he supposed to do?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter, Peter talks to May and he and M.J. are equally oblivious.

Peter crawled into the window of his bedroom, the thought of just crashing onto the bed overwhelming. He managed to contain himself though; May had told him that she would be out working late, so it would still be a little bit before she was home, but crashing with his suit still on was a no go. His muscles ached as he pulled his suit from his body, discarding it in it's usual place in the deep, hidden corner of his closet. He grabbed his pajamas and went straight to the shower. The hot water felt so refreshing as he let it cascade over his body, soothing his hurting muscles. He lost track of time as his mind wondered back to the fight. The biggest thing he kept thinking of was the fact that he couldn't even hit Shocker without getting blasted back. The man had an advantage in both defense and offense, but Ben and May Parker didn't raise a quitter. Peter was nowhere close to giving up, but he was at a loss. That suit and tech were unlike anything he'd encountered to this point. What was he supposed to do? 

The water started to get a little cooler, so Peter promptly shut off the shower, got out and grabbed his towel to dry himself. When he got his hair to a satisfactory level of dry (which was really just not as wet, if he was honest), he threw on his pajamas, went to his room and crashed. He hated not waiting up for May, but his body had never taken damage quite like this before, and he still didn't know the extent of his accelerated healing. He set his phone to its highest and loudest level of ring, just in case May did call with an emergency, turned over and closed his eyes. Within seconds, he was out. 

The next morning, Peter awoke to his aunt standing in the doorway. 

"Rough night last night?" she asked.

"Just tired," Peter said. If May knew why, he just knew she would never let him out of her sight again. 

"I'll say," May replied. The look on her face was less concern and more curiosity. She had always encouraged him to have and enjoy his life, so if nothing else maybe she was actually encouraged by him being so tired, thinking he and some friends were out having some fun. 

"Well, breakfast is ready whenever you are, sleepy head," she quipped before walking away from the doorway.

"Thanks!" Peter called out as his aunt walked away. He finally sat up and and shifted his legs over to where they were hanging off the bed. He took a moment to feel his sides and midsection. They were a lot better than the night before, but still a little rough. Based on that and just how he felt, Peter concluded he was likely to feel a little sore until the end of the day. He got up and went downstairs, finding himself greeted by the wonderful aroma of pancakes. 

"Smells good," Peter remarked as he took a seat at the table. 

"I think I finally managed to find the perfect level to cook them at," May said proudly as she brought over plates full of food for both of them. "So, how did your first tutoring session go last night?" 

"Pretty good," Peter said as he grabbed the syrup to pour onto his pancakes. "Randy definitely seems willing to put in the effort and we made good progress. I just have to find the way to really get through to him, ya know?" 

"You'll get there," May encouraged him, taking her first bite. After swallowing, she continued, "Just give it time." 

"I know," Peter remarked before he remembered another bit of news from the night prior: "Oh yeah, and I also got offered a job, I think." 

"Really? Where at?" May questioned. 

"Mr. Robertson mentioned that the Daily Bugle was looking for part time tech positions. He said I could stop by today after school," Peter explained, taking an. other bite. 

"Peter, I'm really proud of you," May started, "but, I want you to remember that school comes first. If your grades start to suffer..."

"Don't worry May," Peter said, trying to ease his aunt's worries. "I'm confident I can keep up." 

"Alright then," May said, seemingly satisfied with this development. "Well good luck then! Show them over at the Bugle what a Parker is capable of." 

"You know it," Peter said, letting out a little chuckle. Well, that had gone about as well as he could've hoped for. He was nervous she was going to try and say he didn't need to worry about getting a job at 15, but she seemed to understand his need to do what he felt was his responsibility. When he really thought about it, he shouldn't have been that surprised; May had always stood by Ben when the man felt like there was something he had to do too, and now Peter was as much the man of the house as he could be. Peter finished his meal as he and May chatted away about school and work, before he rushed upstairs to get ready for the day. He still had some homework to do, but he could get that done on the bus ride to school. 

Thankfully this time, there were no crimes happening to pull Peter's attention away. He even managed to make it to school early. He marched to his locker, quite satisfied with how the day was unfolding so far. He opened his locker and began getting what he needed for 1st period, when he felt a presence next to him. He closed his locker to see none other than M.J, leaning against a locker a couple down from his in her usual laid back stance. 

"One of these days I'm going to catch you off your guard again," M.J. commented. 

"Yeah, good luck with that," Peter countered. For their entire friendship, M.J. would scare Peter out of his wits as often as she could. Then the bite happened, and Peter developed his trusty spider-sense that alerted him to people sneaking up or lying in wait for him, and it gave him such great pleasure to be able to anticipate her sudden appearances, like this one. 

"How did your first day of tutoring go?" M.J. asked, so he told her the same things he told May. She then looked around, then leaned her face closer to his, and Peter's heartbeat suddenly accelerated. Was she just going to kiss him here?

"Did they end up offering to pay you?" she whispered. 

False alarm. Or, was it really an alarm if it was something he wanted? Okay, now he was just getting confused. Focus!

"No, but after I fixed Randy's dad's computer, he mentioned the Daily Bugle was hiring a part-time tech position. I'm going to head over there after school to see about it," Peter explained. "What about you? Any luck on the job front?" 

"Yeah, I got a job at a local convenience store, so I'm about to get really busy," M.J. replied, and Peter immediately detected her the drop in her mood from her tone alone. It was rare for M.J.'s body to just droop in resignation, but this was one of those rare instances. 

"I'm sorry this is happening to you," he said, trying to cheer his best friend up. 

"Peter Parker," she said, giving him a glare, "if you apologize for something that has nothing to do with you one more time, I'll..."

"Alright, alright," Peter said, throwing up his hands in surrender. "How about I just promise to by stuff from there as often as possible so I can come have an excuse to come and visit you?" 

The smile she gave to that sent a shudder through his whole body. It was a bright smile, as if her whole world had just been made. 

"Yeah, I'd like that," she said. Peter just stood there for a moment, allowing his thoughts to wonder to even the most remote possibility that there could be something between them, but then he forced that idea back. She was his best friend; of course she'd be happy to see him! But, she had never smiled like that at him before. Or had she? Peter scrambled to form a coherent thought as a silence filled the air between them. 

"So, you do anything else last night?" M.J. asked, and Peter had to stop himself from letting out an actual sigh of relief that she had been the one to say something first. 

"Not too much really," he replied. 

"You need to get out more," she teased. 

"You first," he goaded, pointing out the obvious double standard in her statement. "At least I actually like most people," he added. This lead to her delivering a playful punch to his shoulder, which sent a surprising amount of pain through him. It was nothing he couldn't handle, but he winced just a little on instinct. 

"Sorry, you okay?" M.J. asked, a look of concern on her face. 

"Yeah, I'm fine," Peter replied. 

"I mean, your not exactly the toughest kid in school, but I didn't think I hit you that hard," she said. 

"You didn't," Peter said. Where should he go from there? "I just fell last night. No big deal." 

M.J. just gave him an inquisitive look, like she was trying to break him if he was holding anything back, which of course he was. 

"I guess old habits die hard, you know," he added, bringing up his pre-powers habit of tripping over everything. 

"Mhm," she said, the same look remaining on her face. Man, he hated this. With May it was a little bit easier, because he could at least use the excuse that she had already lost so much very recently due to Ben's death, and he didn't want to pile it on. With M.J. however, he had no such reasoning, just his own fears over how she'd take it and what happened if people found out who he was. Even with those, however, it was killing him inside to lie to her. 

"Relax, I'm messing with you," she said, and Peter let himself relax a little. "And just when we both thought you had broken the habit of falling over EVERYTHING too."

"Yeah," Peter said. The warning bell finally rang, so it was time for them to go their separate ways for now. 

"Well, don't go tripping over anything I guess," she said before turning and walking away. She gave him one last look back before turning the corner towards her English class. 

Man, what was he going to do? 

Man, what was she going to do? 

M.J. had thought that surely her annoying crush on her best friend would go away once school started and they settled back into the usual routine of things. Instead, every time she saw him, she got a sudden case of butterflies in her stomach. It was only made worse today by the fact that he had actually offered to come and visit her at her job. Peter knew that convenience store work was the last thing she wanted to do, and was offering to do what he could to help. She chastised herself for how big her smile was after his offer. No wonder it was so silent between them, it probably made him feel awkward. There was no way he felt the same way as her. She wasn't going to lose a best friend over some ridiculous emotions she was suddenly developing. 

On top of all that though, she could tell Peter was hiding something. Peter had always been honest with her before, but there was something different about him recently. He walked straighter and taller, he seemed a lot more assured, and he seemed in general a more confident person. But something....she couldn't place what it was, but something was off with him since school started. She noticed when they were talking that his body language changed just slightly when she asked him if he had done anything, and even more so when she asked if he was okay. He couldn't quite look her in the eye all of a sudden, and he seemed to melt under her stare. 

M.J. knew that it was none of her business; everybody was allowed to have their secrets if they wished. But....her and Peter were best friends. They had always told each other everything, even the deep, dark stuff that nobody else knew. They had something that felt pretty special, even if they weren't romantic yet; ever, because there was no way he could like her. Wow, she really needed to get her brain under control. 

She finally managed to get it under control in some sense at least as she was able to greet Liz in their first period class. 

"Hey M.J," Liz greeted warmly. 

"Hey," M.J. answered in even more gruff a demeanor than she meant. 

"Everything okay?" her friend asked compassionately. Liz was sometimes too sweet for her own good. 

"Why wouldn't it be?" M.J. asked,. shrugging nonchalantly as she sat down in her seat. 

"I saw you talking to Peter as I was on my way to class," Liz clarified. "Didn't know if maybe something was said there or something."

"No, we're fine," M.J. said as she got out her books and stuff. When she finally met her friend's gaze once more, Liz was giving her a knowing look with a small smile for good measure. 

"What?" M.J. asked, a little exasperated. 

"Nothing," Liz replied before turning around in her seat to face the front. 

M.J. was really going to have to work on her poker face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was supposed to be longer, but I felt that, given where it was focused, it made sense to end it here for now. Don't worry, the next chapter will finally introduce none other than J. Jonah Jameson. 
> 
> What did you guys think? Any and all comments are welcome. 
> 
> Stay safe and healthy out there! 
> 
> "There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen..." Luke 16:19-31


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Later that day, Peter walked up to the front doors of the Daily Bugle building. He couldn't believe he was about to walk into one of the largest newspapers in New York to (hopefully) secure a job there. When Randy's dad had first mentioned it, he was a little taken aback at first, but realized this was a huge opportunity. However, as he stood there on the concrete sidewalk, not even 10 feet away from the front doors, Peter suddenly felt very small. He had taken on his first real super villain and been beaten, badly, but Peter was ready and willing to take on Shocker again, without hesitation. This, however was different.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter: Peter meets, and blows the mind of, one J. Jonah Jameson.

Later that day, Peter walked up to the front doors of the Daily Bugle building. He couldn't believe he was about to walk into one of the largest newspapers in New York to (hopefully) secure a job there. When Randy's dad had first mentioned it, he was a little taken aback at first, but realized this was a huge opportunity. However, as he stood there on the concrete sidewalk, not even 10 feet away from the front doors, Peter suddenly felt very small. He had taken on his first real super villain and been beaten, badly, but Peter was ready and willing to take on Shocker again, without hesitation. This, however was different. 

Maybe part of it was the thought of working for none other than J. Jonah Jameson, the founder, CEO and Editor in Chief of the Daily Bugle. Peter didn't know much about the man, other than what he'd heard about through the giant rumor mill that was NYC: he was belligerent, proud, and tenaciously determined to get the scoop on any real story out there. Those things, which were mostly rumor, were bad enough, but there was one undeniable fact that bothered Peter more than anything else: the man HATED Spider-Man. From the first sighting of Peter in the webbed red and blue, the Bugle had done nothing but print cynical, worst case scenario stories that always blamed Spider-Man for whatever crime or disaster that he had actually prevented. The thought of working for someone like that was something Peter had a hard time getting past at first, but he remembered something Uncle Ben had taught him once about being the change he wanted to see. He had been given a free outlet into the system, so maybe, just maybe, Peter could start a ripple effect that lead to actual facts being printed of his evening activities. He didn't need the Bugle to praise him for every good thing he did, but at least knowing the truth was being told wouldn't hurt. 

After taking a deep breath, Peter walked up to the front door, grabbed the handle and pulled it open, letting himself in. Once inside, he scanned the room, finally catching sight of a secretary. Figuring she could direct him to where he needed to go, he walked up to her, suddenly getting nervous when their eyes locked. 

"H-hi," Peter stammered nervously. He did his best to recompose himself before continuing, "I'm Peter Parker, here to see Mr. Robertson." 

"Just a moment," the lady said, offering a friendly smile that helped Peter settle down a little more. He watched as the woman picked up the phone at her desk and dialed a number. 

"Yes, I have a Peter Parker here to see Mr. Robertson?" the woman said to whoever was on the other end of the line. The woman nodded before acknowledging whatever information she was just told before hanging up. "Sign in here," the woman said, gesturing to a clipboard with a piece of paper containing a visitor log on it. Peter promptly filled the necessary information. 

"Mr. Robertson's office is on the 23rd floor," the woman said, handing Peter a visitor tag as she spoke. He promptly took it and clipped it to his shirt pocket. "If you take the main elevator, go down the hall to the right once you come out, and it'll be the fourth office on your left." 

"Thank you," Peter politely offered, turning and heading toward the main elevator. He found that there was a line of about 5 people waiting to get in as well, and they all piled in together when the door opened. Peter was not usually one to get claustrophobic, but he had to admit the situation was certainly less than ideal. His super senses were picking up every smell and noise that each person was making. Thankfully he had learned a great deal over the last few months in terms of how to control it, so the situation wasn't overwhelming. After four other stops, Peter finally found himself alone for the last few floors, until the door finally opened on the 23rd floor. He followed the secretary's instructions, turning right and going down the hall, eventually finding the office sign which read "Joseph R. Robertson" on it. The door to the office was already open, and there was Mr. Robertson himself, looking through some papers at his desk. Peter gave a couple gentle knocks on the door to get the man's attention. 

"Ah Peter," Mr. Robertson said, greeting him with a smile. "Please, come in." Peter walked in until he was in front of the man's desk, accepting Mr. Robertson's handshake. "Shall we have a seat?" the man said, gesturing over to a small, round table with a few chairs surrounding it. Peter nodded, walking over and removing his backpack, setting in on the floor next to his seat of choice. Mr. Robertson came over a few seconds later, bringing over some papers with him as he sat down. 

"So, Peter," Mr. Robertson said, holding the papers upright, presumably so he could refer to them as he spoke, "I've been doing a little digging, just to learn a little bit about you, and I must say, your resume just as a student is already very impressive. You've made straight A's pretty much your whole life, won numerous science, mathematics and robotics awards during your freshman and sophomore years, despite going up against stiff upper class men competition? That's very commendable." 

"Thank you sir," Peter said, squirming a little in his seat. All this attention being brought to his accomplishments was making him a little uneasy, but he quickly regathered himself, willing his body to sit still again. 

Mr. Robertson then set down the papers he had been holding, removed his reading glasses, and leaned forward, looking Peter straight in the eyes. "Listen, Peter, I want to be completely honest with you," he began, and Peter found himself leaning forward more as he spoke as well. The seriousness of Mr. Robertson's tone was both captivating and a little concerning. "Even though this position is only part time, it is still a very important part of our work here," Mr. Robertson continued. "You see, Mr. Jameson, our Editor in Chief, is trying to put the Bugle in a more global position, but he has been insistent on saving costs while doing so. This has included the computer systems that we use. What you will have to work with...it's not exactly the most advanced stuff."

"I appreciate that sir, but I'm quite used to working with stuff like that," Peter assured him, speaking with true confidence for the first time since he entered the building. He wasn't wrong either; he had built his web shooters from stuff that he had either just around the house or from things he had found in the dumpster, and even before that had done the same with computers. While he longed to one day work with more up to date tech, for a first job, working with older equipment wouldn't bother him in the slightest. 

"That's good to hear," Mr. Robertson replied, smiling. He looked like he was about to say more, but someone else came into the office. Peter turned to see a tall, thin woman standing in the doorway of the office. 

"Excuse me for interrupting Mr. Robertson," the woman said, excusing herself. 

"Not at all, Ms. Brant," Mr. Robertson said, leaning back in his seat. "Well, what's the crisis this time?" 

"We're having trouble with our system glitching again," Ms. Brant explained, "Mr. Jameson is trying to get the crew to figure out the issue, but you better get down here. He's about to blow his top again." 

Peter watched as Mr. Robertson sighed and ran his right hand down his face before responding. "I'll be right there," he answered. Ms. Brant promptly headed back to wherever she came from, and Mr. Robertson arose from his seat. 

"You're welcome to come if you want," the man said, "but you haven't filled out any of the paper work yet, so you are free to wait here as well if you want."

"Actually, I think I'll tag along," Peter said, also rising from his seat. "Who knows, maybe I can help somehow." Mr. Robertson gave a small smile before heading out the door, with Peter following just behind. After heading down to the opposite side of the hallway Peter had come from, they came to the server room. Peter glanced around, taking note of everything he saw. Most of the tech wasn't that old, but still not the most up to date either, so maybe it wasn't as bad as Mr. Robertson had implied. 

"What do you mean you don't know!?" The shout of those words snapped Peter's attention to the scene in front of him: J. Jonah Jameson chewing out what looked like a couple of contracted technical experts. 

"Jonah, take it easy," Mr. Robertson said as he and Peter came alongside Jameson and the others. "What's going on?" 

"These two so called 'experts' that we called in can't seem to figure out what's going wrong with our system," Jameson growled. Even though the man was still clearly angry, it was amazing the effect Mr. Robertson seemed to have just by addressing Mr. Jameson directly. Peter found himself wondering how many years it had taken of them working together to reach such a point. 

"Well, yelling at them isn't going to get us any closer to fixing this," Mr. Robertson said, a respectful authority emanating from his voice. Peter had to admit that his respect for the man was growing more and more since he walked into his office. 

"Sir," said one of the contractors, addressing Mr. Robertson, "we have other avenues we can take, but we need more time."

"How much time?" Mr. Robertson spoke up, cutting off what was likely about to be another tirade by Mr. Jameson. 

"At least another day or so," the man said. 

"We don't have that kind of time," Mr. Jameson said, aggression still in his voice, even if it was calmer than before. "Both of you, get out. I'm going to find someone who can do this quicker." The men clearly realized there was no point in arguing, and packed up their equipment and left. Peter watched as they walked out, dejected, before turning back to the two adults left in the room. 

"Jonah, I understand your frustrated," Mr. Robertson said, stepping in front of Jonah and speaking in a bit of a hushed tone. "I am too, but taking it out on everybody you bring in to try and fix things isn't going to make the problem go away any faster." 

"Robbie, every time we bring in guys like that and they don't get the problem solved, it's not only a waste of time, but also money," Mr. Jameson retorted, though not in the low, growly voice from before. It was clear that there was mutual respect between these men, even if Peter could only see one side of it right now. "You know how the Bugle is struggling right now," Mr. Jameson added. 

"Yes, I know that, but you might not want to bring that up in front of a new hire," Mr. Robertson said, gesturing to Peter. Mr. Jameson glanced over, and something that actually looked a little bit like embarrassment came over his face as he stepped forward to address Peter for the first time since they came into the room. 

"Sorry you had to see that, kid," Mr. Jameson said before extending his hand. "J. Jonah Jameson." 

"Peter Parker," Peter said. He was a little hesitant at first, but finally took the man's hand and shook it. 

"That's a good firm handshake you have there, young man," Mr. Jameson remarked. 

"Sorry about that," Peter said, chastising himself inwardly for letting his spider strength get the best of him a little bit. 

"Never apologize for giving a firm handshake, especially when you meet someone," Mr. Jameson asserted. "Often a man's handshake tells a lot about him. Anyway, I understand Robbie here wants to hire you for a part time IT role." 

"Yes sir," Peter said before deciding to press his luck a little further. "In fact, if it's okay, I can take a look at what you've got going on here? If nothing else, it can help familiarize me with the system." 

"Sure, have at it," Mr. Jameson said, giving a half-hearted gesture towards the main server. Peter walked up and took a seat. Mr. Robertson gave him the information to log in, and Peter went to work, scouring the system for any anomalies he could find. He could feel the presence of both adults standing behind him as he worked, but he did his best to focus on the task at hand. 

"Looks like you've got a bug in the system," Peter said after a few minutes of digging around. 

"Those guys earlier said they checked for stuff like that already," Mr. Jameson said, now leaning in so that he was next to Peter. 

"This kind is a bit tricky to detect; I've encountered it on my own computer before," Peter explained as he continued to work. "I'm trying to see if I can isolate it now." Peter felt Mr. Robertson's presence a little closer to him as he kept at it, eventually finding what he was looking for. "Alright, I've managed to isolate it. If my hunch is correct, I should be able to....yes, I've begun the process of purging it from the system." Peter then rotated the chair so he could face both the adults. "I'd recommend restarting your system in about 10 minutes just to be safe, but everything should be back to normal." 

The two men looked at him as if he had 3 heads. Mr. Jameson was the first to speak up, turning to Mr. Robertson as he did. 

"Robbie, are you telling me that I wasted money on bringing in those guys when you had some child super genius just sitting in your office?" the man said, flustered. 

"Looks like it," Mr. Robertson said, flashing Peter a quick smile of pride as he did. Mr. Jameson walked his coworker a bit down the room and spoke to him in a more hushed voice. Peter had to resist the strong urge to listen in on the conversation, as he knew it was quite likely about him. After a moment, Mr. Jameson came back and shook Peter's hand vehemently. 

"Congratulations son, you got the job!" Mr. Jameson practically shouted, finally releasing Peter's hand before continuing. "Now I warn you, we expect nothing short of excellence hear at the Daily Bugle. You think you can handle that, young man?" 

"Yes sir," Peter replied, trying his best to disguise how intimidated he still was by the man. Mr. Jameson gave no further response, instead taking his leave. Mr. Robertson then nodded for he and Peter to walk back to the office. When they got in there, the man had him sit back at the table where they were before, but Mr. Robertson went back to his desk for a moment, getting on his computer. After a moment, Mr. Robertson walked over to the printer that sat against the left corner wall of the room, grabbing the papers and finally joining Peter back at the desk. 

"Take this home and fill it out," Mr. Robertson said, "and have your guardian sign it as well. You can bring it back when you start on Monday." 

"Yes sir; thanks," Peter replied. 

"No, thank you," Mr. Robertson said, a proud smile once again on his lips. "Not many people have won Jonah over like that. You're already in pretty esteemed company. I think you'll fit in here just fine."

Peter started to get up from his seat, but Mr. Robertson held out his hand to stop him. "Hold on Peter, there's just one more thing," he said, walking to his desk quickly. He appeared to be writing something down, then motioned for Peter to follow him. He grabbed his backpack and quickly followed Mr. Robertson out the door. They got in the elevator and got off on the 17th floor. After a moment, they walked into the Human Resources office, and Peter followed Mr. Robertson into the office of a Glory Grant. 

"Hey Robbie," the woman said with a smile. Seriously, how was a place run by J. Jonah Jameson so full of friendly people? "Who's this?" 

"This is Peter Parker; he's going to be working part-time with us in an IT capacity. However, he's already helped us out with something, so Mr. Jameson felt he should get this," Mr. Robertson said, handing the woman the piece of paper in his hand. She took it, and Peter noticed her eyes grow wider as she smiled once more. 

"Well Mr. Parker," the lady said, "it looks like you are a rare recipient of a generous advance!" 

Peter couldn't believe it; an advance? Like, an early payment? 

"You should be proud," Ms. Grant added as she stood up. "Mr. Jameson doesn't offer these out to just anyone. Wait right here." Ms. Grant walked out of the office and disappeared around the corner of the room. After a couple minutes, she came back, and handed Peter a check for $200. 

"Don't go spending that all in one place," Mr. Robertson said. "Seriously Peter, you deserve that. Thanks for earlier." 

"No problem," Peter stammered, still not taking his eyes off the check. Even that amount could really start to help a little with some of the bills he and May had. Finally he looked up to Mr. Robertson. "Thank you." 

"My pleasure," Mr. Robertson said, smiling. "Alright, I need to get back to work. I'll see you out real quick." Peter gave Ms. Grant a thank you as well before heading out the door. He and Mr. Robertson descended down the floors in the elevator. When they finally came back to the front desk, Peter returned his visitor pass, and he said his goodbye to Mr. Robertson before heading out the window. 

Wow, that had gone a lot better than expected. Maybe, just maybe, this was the start of his luck turning around.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Glad to finally get back to this story! I have struggled recently with inspiration for this chapter, so I'm glad to finally get it out there, but I have mixed feelings about the results. I had planned on writing a couple more scenes in this chapter, then the Bugle thing just ended up taking over and....I don't know. What do you guys think? 
> 
> Hope everyone is staying safe and healthy out there. This too, shall pass, even if it takes longer then we initially hoped. 
> 
> "We wait in hope for the Lord..." Psalm 33:20-22


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "May," he said with a little bit of a whine as he took a seat in a chair next to her. 
> 
> "I didn't say anything," May said, holding her hands up defensively. 
> 
> "You didn't have to," Peter clarified. "Look, I know you want me to just enjoy my life while I'm young and all that, but I can help. Please May, let me help." 
> 
> May just looked at him for a second. She looked as if she was somewhere else, despite that she was making direct eye contact with Peter. "You are so much like your uncle," she said after a moment. "Always wanting to help. Alright Peter, we'll do this together...on one condition." 
> 
> "And what might that be?" Peter asked as he tilted his head sideways a little.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter: May and Peter talk about jobs and relationships, Peter stresses, and he and Ned have a Lego Death Star construction interrupted.

Peter walked through the front door to see May sitting at the kitchen table. "Hey May, I've got great news!" he said enthusiastically, running over to her with the papers and early bonus in his hand. His excitement dampened for a moment when he saw that she was going through the bills. That's when it hit him: she had said she expected to work late tonight. "Did you get someone to cover for you tonight?" he asked her. "I'm just surprised to see you home early." 

He watched as May removed her reading glasses and ran her hands over her face momentarily as she leaned back, finally dropping her hands and turning to face him. "No, I actually had to close down the store early today," she said. 

"What? Why?" Peter asked, seemingly at a loss. 

"We just haven't been getting as much business recently, so I closed up early so we'd at least save a little on hours and bills," she explained. 

"I'm sorry May," Peter replied, perking up again for a moment when he remembered the nature of the good news he had for her. "However, I have something that might cheer you up!" He sat the bonus check he had gotten from the Bugle in front of her, plus the employment papers. "They gave me the job May! Plus, I did some work initially for them, and they gave me this as a bonus!" he said excitedly, gesturing to the check. 

A brief sense of relief seemed to wash over May, but Peter picked up something else in her expression. It was something anyone with the last name of Parker seemed to suffer from: guilt. 

"May," he said with a little bit of a whine as he took a seat in a chair next to her. 

"I didn't say anything," May said, holding her hands up defensively. 

"You didn't have to," Peter clarified. "Look, I know you want me to just enjoy my life while I'm young and all that, but I can help. Please May, let me help." 

May just looked at him for a second. She looked as if she was somewhere else, despite that she was making direct eye contact with Peter. "You are so much like your uncle," she said after a moment. "Always wanting to help. Alright Peter, we'll do this together...on one condition." 

"And what might that be?" Peter asked as he tilted his head sideways a little. 

"That you at least spend some of the money from this bonus by going on a date with M.J." 

"May," Peter groaned, rubbing his eyes with his hands before running them on the backside of his head and neck. 

"Peter, like I said before, it's obvious that something changed between you guys this past summer," May said. Peter refused to make eye contact with her for a moment, trying to think of what he could say to get her off his back about this. "Alright," May said, "what's bothering you about this?" 

"I don't know May, it's just..." There were so many things that he wanted to say; he finally settled for one that didn't involve discussing his alter ego, but was no less true: "We've been best friends for so long. She has helped me through so much, especially after....if she doesn't feel the same way, I might lose that." He finally met May's eyes again as he finished, and it was clear she was taking a moment to process what he was saying before responding. 

"I understand that," she said after a moment. "You guys have been an important part in each other's lives these last four years; it makes sense that you don't want to lose that. However, let's say you don't tell her, then she gets with somebody else while you guys are still in high school..." 

Peter bristled at the thought, and spoke up: "I don't see what that has to do with anything?"

"That's because I wasn't finished," May said, giving him a knowing look that made him realize he should've minded his manners a little better. Still, she didn't bring it up otherwise as she continued: "Say she gets with another guy though. Those feelings that you have for her are only going to make you extremely jealous, and it's going to eat you alive." 

"Maybe," Peter said, not even really wanting to acknowledge the idea. "I could also just as likely have moved on from her by that time." 

"That's a possibility," May said; Peter braced himself for a BUT as she continued, "but if you like her as much as I'm 99% sure I've picked up on, you won't just 'move on' from her that easily." 

Peter looked down. He hated to admit it, but she was most likely right. He REALLY liked M.J; that was becoming more and more obvious every second he was ever around her these days. He had never really had a major crush before, so this was all knew territory for him, which only made this whole thing even more terrifying. Then there was the whole Spider-Man thing; when he first started out less than half a year ago, it was scary at first, but it quickly become fun and exciting to him. Still, he always knew it was dangerous, then the whole Shocker thing happened, and that only made things even worse. It wasn't fair of him to bring someone that closely into his life...was it? 

He hadn't even realized how long he'd gone without responding to his aunt's latest comment when she finally spoke up again: "Look, I can tell you're really thinking this whole thing through and that you're nervous, which are both good things." She arose from her seat as she continued, "I won't make you use a portion of this towards a date with her, but seriously, please don't let fear of losing what you have stop you from gaining something even better." 

She then turned around and walked into the kitchen, and for just a moment, Peter stood up and opened his mouth to say more. He wanted to tell her about ALL the variables he was thinking of in this situation, including the spider related ones. Then the moment passed, and he slowly closed his mouth just before she turned around and glanced at him again briefly before getting stuff out to get ready for dinner. He silently grabbed his backpack and marched slowly up the stairs to his bedroom, where he tossed it in the vicinity of his desk and allowed himself to simply flop back onto the bed. Thoughts began to overwhelm his mind as he lay there, seemingly unable to move: why was being a superhero so lonely? Was he just overthinking this and making it harder than it needed to be? Every time he allowed his mind to entertain the idea of telling her, it would then immediately go to one of many worst case scenarios: she would reject him because it would be too much for her, or she would accept him but either she would get hurt because of him, or he would die in action one day, leaving her alone again. 

Peter sat up, yanking the pillow from his bed and pressing it to his face, letting out a hard groan into it. It was the only way he could think of to vent about the situation. He then set his arms down, still clutching the pillow, looking up as he took a deep breath. He needed to relax about this; besides, he had Ned coming over tomorrow to be...

"Oh my goodness, Ned!" Peter said out loud, suddenly realizing he had completely forgot to ask May about his new friend coming over on Friday evening. He quickly got up from his bed and threw open the door, sprinting down the stairs and coming to the kitchen. 

"What's the emergency?" May asked as Peter practically slammed into the counter he was in such a hurry. 

"I completely forgot; you remember the new guy I mentioned at school?" he asked all at once. 

"Oh yeah, Ned," May answered in the affirmative. "Your new physics lab partner, right?" 

"That's right," Peter confirmed. "I totally forgot that we flipped a coin and agreed that he could come over here first. I meant to ask you about it ever since, but I totally forgot until just now. I hope it's okay." 

"Of course it's okay, Peter," May said as if her response should be common sense, which he had always suspected it would be. "I'm proud of you for taking such initiative," she added, "and I look forward to meeting him." 

"Yeah, he's pretty cool," Peter said before turning and sprinting back up the stairs to text Ned that everything was in the all clear. As soon as he sent the message, he let out another sigh of relief; he thought to himself, "Who knew being a friend would be so stressful?" 

Sure enough, the next day was Friday evening. The school day seemed to drag on, and of course there was M.J, but Peter managed to get through it about as well as he could expect. He had made up his mind the previous night that he was just going to focus on enjoying his time with his new friend, and nothing was going to get in the way of that; not school, not work, not M.J, and DEFINITELY not Spider-Man. Peter told Ned he had to drop off his papers at the Bugle on their way to his place, but his new friend didn't seem to mind. 

"That's cool, you know, that you're being all responsible and stuff," Ned offered politely as they were on their way to the Bugle building. 

"Just doing the best I can, I guess," Peter said as they walked along. 

"Who knows, maybe they'll even interview you!" Ned said excitedly. Peter turned and gave him a questioning look.

"I'm pretty sure that's not how it works when you're a part-time IT guy there, Ned," Peter explained, offering a light laugh. 

Ned just shrugged in response. "I don't really know how jobs work," he said. 

They were basically in and out of the Bugle building; Robbie had told Peter to enjoy himself while he was still not "officially" a working man yet, and he decided that was good advice. Before long, they got to the house. May still wasn't home yet, so for now it would just be the two of them. 

"What do you want to do first?" Peter asked. Ned had told him the previous night that his mom would only let him have about 3-4 hours there, mostly due to the fact that his parents didn't know Peter or May yet, so Peter knew they only had a limited time. 

"You got any good Lego sets?" Ned asked. 

"Dude, I got ALL the Lego sets," Peter answered, leading the way up to his room. Once they were there, he opened up a closet that was largely devoted to all things Lego, and the amazed look on Ned's face was so very worth it. His friend pointed to one in particular, and his hand was practically shaking as he did. 

"You...you have the newest Lego death star set?" Ned stammered out. The look he gave Peter had him convinced that he must rule the world or something. 

"Is that your selection then?" Peter asked. Ned enthusiastically nodded his head, so they got it out, spilling the pieces all over the floor, and set out to build. For about an hour or so, they built it up while talking about anything and everything. Things were going very well, when suddenly Peter heard it: an explosion, out in the distance. 

"Dude, did you hear that?" Ned asked. 

"Sure did," Peter said, already getting up. He knew what he had to do, even if leaving his new friend was the last thing he wanted to do right now. "Hey man," he started, trying to come up with some kind of explanation for his sudden need to leave, "I was, uh..I was just looking at this pizza place, but their website was down. I promise you though, it's awesome, and I'm going to run down there and grab us some real quick."

"It's a little early for that, isn't it?" Ned asked. 

"What, are you complaining?" Peter asked, trying to keep his anxious mood as light as possible. 

"No way man; I'm always down for pizza," Ned responded. 

"Great; text me what you want, and I'll be back with it as soon as I can!" Peter said as he practically sprinted down the stairs and flew out the front door. He hated doing this, but the explosion sounded serious, and who knew if he might be able to save lives that emergency responders couldn't get to. 

With great power comes great responsibility, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope everybody liked it! 
> 
> My prayers for everyone to stay safe and healthy. Hopefully my stories can provide some much needed escape during these crazy times. 
> 
> "I say to the Lord..." Psalm 16:1-2


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trusting his spider-sense, he maneuvered through the building quickly, covering the top floor first and working his way downwards. Along the way, he dealt with weak walls and floors, collapsing sections of the roof, and sudden bursts of flame in various areas, some of which made just the slightest contact with his costume, though not so much that he ever caught fire himself. Finally, he grabbed an older man from the last room he needed to search and practically jumped through the front doors of the building just in time to avoid another sudden burst of flame. Peter set the man down once they were a safe distance away from the building, then pulled up his mask just enough to finally let in some non-smoke infested air. He never thought he would appreciate the air of what had become an over industrialized section of Queens, but here he was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter; Peter rescues man, gets no credit, and received a call from M.J, all while continuing to realize the growing issues his life as Spider-Man is presenting to his relationships.

Once he was suited up, Peter quickly made his way to the scene of the explosion. When he arrived, it turned out to be even worse than he thought: the building in question was an older but still operational steel factory. He remembered going to field trips there when he was younger; he had been amazed at all the different ways that one of the strongest metals on earth could be manipulated for whatever purpose for which it was intended. Now, the 3 story building was almost completely engulfed in yellow and orange flame. From his perch on a building across the street, he could see people still trying to get out or calling for help. Peter knew he didn't have much time, as the building's structure was likely weakening rapidly and would soon be on the verse of total collapse. 

Backing up to the edge of the rooftop he was on, he then sprinted forward and, putting all his strength into his legs, jumped forward. Right at the apex of his leap, he was within his web shooters' range of the building, so he fired a web near the top, pulling tight and flying through an empty window. He landed on a wall on the far end of the room, where he could already feel the heat through the finger tips of his costume. If it was that hot, he may not even have as much time as he thought he did. 

Trusting his spider-sense, he maneuvered through the building quickly, covering the top floor first and working his way downwards. Along the way, he dealt with weak walls and floors, collapsing sections of the roof, and sudden bursts of flame in various areas, some of which made just the slightest contact with his costume, though not so much that he ever caught fire himself. Finally, he grabbed an older man from the last room he needed to search and practically jumped through the front doors of the building just in time to avoid another sudden burst of flame. Peter set the man down once they were a safe distance away from the building, then pulled up his mask just enough to finally let in some non-smoke infested air. He never thought he would appreciate the air of what had become an over industrialized section of Queens, but here he was. 

He pulled his mask back down and turned his attention to the man he had just rescued, who was being given oxygen and being attended to by first responders. He listened in just a little, and he could tell the man's breathing was getting back to something at least resembling normal, so that was good. 

"Get out of here Spider-Man," came a sudden command, and Peter glanced ahead of him to see a couple police officers walking quickly towards him. "You're lucky we don't have any evidence, or we'd be arresting you for causing this mess." 

Peter looked at the officers with a dumbfounded expression that he knew they couldn't see, but nevertheless displayed anyway. "Really?" he said, gesturing to his suit, which had almost no red or blue visible anymore, but was almost completely covered in soot and ash. He considered saying more, but the officers faces indicated they were neither amused or convinced any differently, so he jogged off for a moment before firing a web and hoisting his way upward. 

When he came to a building a distance away, he dropped onto it's roof, taking off his mask fully to allow in some more oxygen again. The thing had become heavy with smoke, like the rest of his suit. Still, despite that he had just saved so many lives, all he could think of was how the police basically ran him off the scene. He had an idea that some in law enforcement might not trust him when he first started this whole thing, but it had been months now. What was he going to have to do to prove that his intentions were good? Would anything ever be enough? 

Peter then remembered he had a more pressing problem on his hands: Ned. As if that wasn't bad enough, May was due home very shortly, if she wasn't there already. If he hurried, he could at least make it there and still have at least a little bit of time to hang out with Ned. He had no idea what his excuse was going to be to explain away his smell; he just hoped he could think of something by the time he got back. 

After changing out of his suit and into his normal clothes from earlier, Peter made his way back home. When he got home, sure enough, there was May, who was actually sitting at the table with Ned, snacking away on some cookies. 

"Oh my goodness," May said, getting up quickly and walking over to Peter with concern clearly written all over her face. "Peter, what happened to you?" 

"Oh yeah, this," Peter said, pointing to what was likely his very smoke-covered face. "Well, uh....I went to get some pizza for Ned and myself, and they, uh, must've had an issue with one of the ovens or something..."

May then wrapped him in a hug, which Peter was grateful, because at least this meant his explanation was satisfactory enough, at least for her. "I'm just glad you're okay," May said. "The last thing I need is to lose my nephew because some goofball doesn't know how to use an oven properly!" 

"I'm fine May," Peter said before pulling away from her and walking over to Ned. "Hey man, I'm sorry about today," he said, trying to convey an apologetic look through his darkened face. 

"Ah, don't sweat it," Ned said, waving the whole thing off. "From what your Aunt tells me, these kinds of things seem to happen to you all the time." 

Sadly, it was true. Granted, most of the unfortunate incidents that had occurred over the last few months had been Spider-Man related, but he was known for bad luck even before he got his powers. He had come to call it "Parker Luck," and right now, that felt like a pretty fitting way of thinking about it. 

"We'll definitely have to try this again sometime, and soon," Peter said. 

"Yeah, for sure man," Ned said, the whole situation seemingly not at all dampening his natural enthusiasm. Peter wished he could bottle that optimism and sell it. 

Ned's phone suddenly dinged, and he took it out and looked at it. "Well, unfortunately I must take my leave," he said with a sigh. 

"We were happy to have you Ned," May said. "Hopefully things will work out better next time."

"I'm sure," Ned replied, getting up from his seat and picking up his backpack. "After all, this kind of luck can't follow you around all the time, can it?" he said teasingly, giving Peter a couple taps on the shoulder before walking past them both. "See you guys soon!"

"Yeah, see ya man," Peter said, but he didn't even turn around to see Ned go out the door. Instead, he was just processing the words that his new friend has just spoken. 

"This kind of luck can't follow you around all the time, can it?" 

But what if it could? What if, because if his choice to be Spider-Man, this was going to be a regular occurrence, and he'd never be able to have normal friendships with people again? 

"Hey, you okay?" May's words shook him out of his own head for a moment. 

"Yeah," Peter replied, barely giving her a glance. 

"Peter, don't beat yourself up about this," she said. "You were just trying to do something good, and it backfired particularly poorly. It won't happen every time."

But...would it? 

"I appreciate that May," he said. "I think I'm going to go take a good, long shower, and try to clean myself up a little bit."

"Good idea," May said. "You stand in here much longer and the fire detectors will go off," she teased. Peter gave his aunt a brief glare, rolling his eyes before heading up the stairs. He discarded his backpack, which contained his burned up Spider-Man suit. He glanced in his closet at the spare one he kept; thankfully, after a similar incident early in the summer, he had learned the value of keeping a spare on hand, even if it was incredibly time consuming to make one by hand. He had watched countless YouTube videos on sewing before he finally was able to create his suit, and it was a painfully long process, and expensive. 

Peter grabbed a change of clothes and went and took a long, cool shower, taking great care to get as much of the smoke out of his face and the rest of his person as he possibly could. The cool water felt amazing on his quite frankly still hot skin, and after a while he felt much better. After he got out, he went back to his room to see that he was getting a call from M.J. For some reason, he hesitated in picking it up though. It seems like he had messed up somehow, either by ducking out or lying about why, to both May and Ned. He really didn't relish taking the chance of needing to go three for three in that department, but he finally decided to pick it up.

"Hey M.J," he greeted, refusing to move from his current spot on the floor he was standing on. "What's up?" 

"Well, I just got a job at a local supermarket, so that's cool, I guess," she said. 

"Oh, that's good," Peter said, finally deciding to sit down on his bed. 

"How'd it go with Ned?" M.J. asked. Peter rolled his eyes; of course, because she was his best friend, she would ask about such a thing, but now he had to give her the same lie he gave the others. 

Yep, three for three it was. 

"Okay I guess," he answered. "I went to get us some pizza, but the place, um, had some issues with the oven there, so I didn't come home with any pizza, and we didn't get to spend a lot of time hanging out." 

For a moment, there was silence on the other end of the line. In the past, there would be some mild chuckling at the least on her end of the line, but instead, there was silence, until M.J. finally spoke up again. 

"I'm sorry to hear that," she said, before quickly changing the subject. "So listen, my dad's....well, being himself, and I just really want to get out of the house. You want to, maybe, hangout at the library or something for a while? It should still be open for a bit." 

Peter lowered the phone to his lap for a moment, thinking. Last time he and M.J. went to the library, he had to leave her abruptly, and with the way this afternoon/evening was going, he wasn't too keen on taking the chance of that happening again. At the same time though, there was nothing he wanted more in this moment than to see her. Anytime something had been bothering him over the last four years, he had been able to come to her about whatever it was. She didn't often know what to say, but she was an excellent listener and, in her own, totally unique way, she always knew how to make him feel better. 

"Yeah, I'd like that," he found himself saying into the phone before he'd even fully decided on how to answer. 

"Okay, cool," M.J. replied. "See you there in 30?" 

"Sounds good," Peter said, then he hung up. He dropped his phone and ran his hands through his hair; if he had a nickel for every time he had done that in the last several days, he'd be a rich man. There was a part of him that thought maybe he should call her back and just cancel, but there was something in her voice....some kind of nervousness that he'd rarely, if ever heard in her before. Could it be that she...liked him too? No, no way....but maybe? Regardless of this, he really wanted to see her too. He got up, and found himself glancing at his closet, looking at the spare Spider-Man suit he had. Should he bring it? Part of him didn't want to, but at the same time, the memory of what happened to his uncle was still fresh in his mind, even after all these months. It didn't matter if he wanted to or not, he needed to have it on, just in case. 

After putting on his suit underneath his normal clothes and stuffing his mask into a jacket pocket, he went downstairs and told May he was going to see M.J. at the library. She offered him a teasing look, and Peter just ignored it and went out the door. Hopefully, with just the right amount of good luck for a change, he could at least have SOMETHING go right tonight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all liked it! 
> 
> My prayers are with you all, that you may stay safe and healthy (physically or otherwise) during this crazy time. 
> 
> "Be patient, then, brothers and sisters..." James 5:7-11


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Besides, there was something else on her mind about Peter these days: the fact that he was clearly keeping something from her. For as long as she could remember, her and Peter had always been honest with each other. Ever since that fateful project that they got partnered on in 7th grade, they were always completely open with one another, possibly too much so. Yet, ever since the last month or so of the previous school year, Peter had become a little more secretive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter, Montana realizes his job is not done, and M.J. tries to get to the bottom...anything about Peter Parker.

Montana walked into his home, proud of a job well done. He had just overseen the arrival of a large weapons shipment, and everything had gone off without a hitch. Which was why he was very surprised when he flicked on the light to illuminate his living room and found none other than one James Wesley, Wilson Fisk's right hand man, sitting in his favorite chair. The man had an even look on his face, so Montana had no idea why he was there. 

"What are you doing here?" Montana asked, his discontent and frustration seeping through his words. "The delivery went perfectly tonight." 

"Have you seen the news lately?" Mr. Wesley asked in an even tone. 

"No," Montana simply answered. He then watched as Wesley grabbed the remote from the stand just beside the chair and turned the TV on. Montana took a few steps forward so that he could see the screen, and was shocked to see footage of Spider-Man helping save lives after a fire engulfed a building in Queens. His eyes widened as he realized that, for the first time, he had failed to execute one who interfered in his operations. 

"Can you explain this, Montana?" Mr. Wesley asked. 

"That boy's got more lives than a bag full of cats," Montana said, trying to show to greatly the frustration boiling within himself. This "Spider-Man," whoever he was, had now become a stain on his overall glistening reputation. He then turned to the man sitting in his chair as he continued. "I'm assuming you came here so that it could be made known that I still have a job to do?"

Mr. Wesley rose up from his seat and walked forward until he was face to face with Montana. "I'm here to tell you that, if you should fail again..."

"I won't," Montana assured him, his face hardening as the words left his mouth. 

"You better not," Mr. Wesley replied. "You see Montana, the only reason that it's me visiting you tonight instead of some of Mr. Fisk's...rougher employees is because you get results. Up until now, you had never failed before. Then again, the stakes were never this high before. Spider-Man, in the short time since he came into the picture, has rapidly become one of the greatest threats to our operation. Some don't even want to go out and do jobs anymore, because they feel as though they don't stand a chance should he catch up to them. Mr. Fisk gave you the tools to take care of this threat....and you failed to deliver."

"You can tell Mr. Fisk I'll get him this time," Montana said, managing his tone a little better this time. "He has my word on that." 

"Then I suggest you keep it this time," Mr. Wesley responded, "because if you should fail again, it won't be me that pays you a visit. Goodnight Montana." The man then saw himself out of the house, leaving Montana to stare at the footage of Spider-Man bringing people out of a burning building. His fists clenched in anger, but he quickly made himself relax them. Coming after that bug in a rage, no matter the stakes, would only make him reckless. Clearly his target was not easy to kill. What Montana really needed was a plan; to put Spider-Man in a situation that played against him. 

Montana's career, and his life, now depended on it. 

M.J. got to the library 15 minutes before she had arranged to meet with Peter. She found their usual table, then went and got both her and Peter's usual drinks from the library's cafe, before she finally took her seat and waited. If she was honest, she didn't know what the real purpose of her calling Peter was. Sure, her father really had been drinking and becoming more and more delirious again, like usual, but she was hoping for something more to happen tonight between her and Peter. She prided herself on rationale and being able to observe things, but anytime she was around him ever since the summer, it was like her brain kept getting some kind of interference. She kept finding herself unable to think straight around him, which only meant that when she would go back in her head and try and process her interactions with Peter, particularly since school started, she couldn't figure out if he felt the same way or not. Instead, all she kept thinking about was how kind he was, how for the last few months he had been walking more upright and with more confidence, and how cute his brown eyes were. 

Ugh, why was her best friend turning her into a pile of mush? For as long as she could remember, M.J. had swore to herself that she would never even think this way about some ridiculous boy, much less actually CONSIDER acting on such thoughts. Yet, here she was, actually contemplating telling one Peter Parker that there was a part of her that wanted something more with him. She knew it was risky, but you miss 100% of the shots you never take, right? It's not like he could tell her that he didn't feel the same way and then decide to never speak to her again because the whole situation would just make things insanely awkward between them, RIGHT?? 

No, she wouldn't think about that possibility. Besides, there was something else on her mind about Peter these days: the fact that he was clearly keeping something from her. For as long as she could remember, her and Peter had always been honest with each other. Ever since that fateful project that they got partnered on in 7th grade, they were always completely open with one another, possibly too much so. Yet, ever since the last month or so of the previous school year, Peter had become a little more secretive.

It was not lost on M.J. what had happened around that time: her and Peter had been on a class field trip to the laboratory at Empire State University, where they were studying various types of bugs at the time, including an exhibit of 15 genetically altered spiders. However, one of them had been missing, their tour guide assuming that that particular specimen was in the back for study. However, not long after that she had suddenly heard Peter let out a small yelp of pain, and when she turned and asked him if he was okay, he said it felt like something bit him. Whatever it was, it had likely been throw off his hand by the sudden jerking down of his arm in response to it, so they never knew for sure. 

On the bus ride home, Peter had started to get chills and wasn't feeling so great, so when they had gotten back to the school, she immediately took him to the nurse, who ended up calling May. Peter's aunt promptly took him home, and he had looked miserable as both her and May helped him to the car. However, the next day, he was back at school, and he looked better than ever. 

It wasn't too long after that that Spider-Man first arrived on the scene. 

The idea seemed ludicrous to her at first, but as she examined the events that occurred that day, Peter's sudden change in physical posture, the sudden ease by which he seemed to get through gym class, and now his strange disappearances....it seemed to add up. 

Peter Parker just might be Spider-Man. 

She still had no solid evidence though, but honestly, she preferred that thought to some other thoughts that had crossed her mind about his secretive behavior, such as that he was on drugs. No, that couldn't be it. But could he really be Spider-Man? 

Whatever it was, she still felt that she owed him the opportunity to allow him to be the one to tell her. Peter had never done anything to break her trust (at least as far as she knew) and besides, she knew she would feel better in the long run knowing that she hadn't had to coax it out of him. 

So, what was the plan again, anyway? 

"Hey M.J." She was shaken from her thoughts as one Peter Parker plopped down in the seat next to her, his deep brown eyes meeting her gaze. 

"Hey," she said in what felt like the most awkward manner possible. She looked away for a moment, closing her eyes and chastising herself internally. She just needed to relax. This was her best friend! There was no logical reason for her to act this way around him. She looked back up to see him awkwardly fiddling his hands together, like he had no idea what to do ever, like the cute dork he was. 

Yep, she was in trouble. 

"I'm sorry about your dad," he said. At least now he had brought up a topic of discussion. This should be much easier. 

"Is it sad that I am almost used to it by now?" she asked, realizing how sad that really did sound when the words left her mouth. 

"Maybe, but at the same time, not completely surprising," Peter replied. She could tell there was an underlying current of frustration in his voice. Peter Parker seemed to like, or at least tolerate, almost everybody, even Flash Thompson. However, if there was one person that seemed to test his patience, it was her father. M.J. knew that this was likely her own fault, as she hadn't exactly painted a very good picture of him, but there just didn't seem to be much there. Peter had told her repeatedly that she shouldn't have to be the adult in the home and that she shouldn't have to take care of him, but he would always walk it back and apologize, knowing he wasn't helping the situation. This was one of the biggest ways she knew that he cared deeply for her on at least some level. 

"Yeah," she finally muttered after realizing there had been far too long an awkward silence between them. 

"Hey, you got me my favorite," Peter said as she observed him picking up and taking a sip out of the mug next to him. "Thanks. You really didn't have to do that." 

"I know; I wanted to," M.J. replied, immediately wondering if that second phrase was too telling a statement. She was surprised to see what looked like him actually BLUSHING just a little bit. Maybe there was a chance after all? "Relax M.J," she said in her mind, "just keep the conversation light and easy for now." 

"So," she continued, "what exactly happened with Ned earlier? You said there was some incident at the place you tried to get pizza or something?" 

"Oh, yeah yeah," he replied, but something in his voice didn't have her completely convinced. 

"Is there something else?" M.J. prodded, leaning forward just a little bit. 

"N-no," Peter stammered in response. "I mean, what else would there be?" 

"You tell me," she asked. Peter seemed to practically squirm in his seat a little bit, but finally he appeared to recompose himself a little bit.

"I mean, we at least got a little Lego building in," he said. "It's nice to know someone who actually shares by affinity for all things Lego." Now there was a bit of a teasing look on his face, and M.J. wasn't just about to let that slide. 

"I'm sorry you just haven't grow up yet," she fired back, staring him down as she took a sip of her own drink for the first time. 

"Excuse me," Peter replied, putting his hand over his chest like he took the greatest offense to her reply, "it has been proven that building Lego sets soothes the mind and helps brain development." 

"Whatever," she replied, taking another sip of her drink, when a thought hit her: there had been an explosion earlier in Queens, and Spider-Man had been there. 

"So, did you hear about that explosion earlier?" she prompted. 

"Yeah, me and Ned heard it loud and clear from the house," he replied. Okay, nothing there.

"I heard Spider-Man saved a lot of people from the resulting fire," M.J. continued, "seems like he was quite the hero tonight." 

"Yeah, I guess," he replied sheepishly, and how he wasn't making eye contact with her anymore, instead looking down at his drink. 

"What's the matter?" she asked, reaching over and teasingly hitting him in the arm, "afraid to recognize a hero when you see one?" 

"The police don't seem to think so," he said. 

"Oh come one Peter," she said, remembering the footage the news had shown of a couple of cops talking to Spider-Man when the whole thing was done, "you can't seriously think that just because a couple cops don't agree doesn't mean he's a hero?"

Peter didn't answer, and he looked as if his mind was somewhere else. 

"Hey, are you alright?" she asked him, leaning forward a little more over the table. 

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" he asked, his eyes finally coming back to meet hers. 

"I don't know, you just....you look like you're carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders," M.J. replied. Peter just looked at her for a moment, and everything about his eyes told her that there was SOMETHING that he wanted to tell her, but instead he looked away from her again. 

"Hey," she said, reaching out and taking his hand in her own, "you know you can talk to me about anything right?" She wasn't sure if this was her trying to reassure him or a plea to him to open up to her, to tell her what was clearly bothering him; probably both. 

"I know," he said, offering her a smile, but unlike most Peter Parker smiles, there didn't seem to be much joy emanating from it. Rather, it seemed like a cover for what was really going on inside of him. M.J. was feeling more hurt by the second that he clearly felt she couldn't share whatever was bothering him with her. 

She was about to say something else, when suddenly the whole building shook. It only lasted a couple seconds, but it seemed to leave the whole place a little shook up. 

"What was that?" she asked, looking around to see everybody around them clearly thinking the same thing. 

"I'm not sure," she heard Peter say, but when she turned to face him, he was up out of his seat. "Listen M.J, I need to get going. May might be worried about me, and I want to check on her too." 

M.J. just looked at him for a minute, having been caught off guard by his sudden need to leave. 

"Oh, okay," she stammered, before collecting herself. "Are you sure you can't just call and check on her?" 

"It's just...she worries. Gotta go," he said, turning and darting out of her view, leaving M.J. just sitting there, more than a little hurt at Peter Parker's latest sudden departure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope everybody liked it! If the plan holds up, there will only be a couple more chapters, so we are almost to the end! 
> 
> My prayers for you all; please stay safe and healthy (physically or otherwise) during this crazy time. 
> 
> "But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted..." Psalm 10:14


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter darted out of the library and out into the New York night thoroughly ticked off at his situation. As he found an alley where he could discard his clothes, leaving only his Spider-Man costume underneath, he kept thinking back to the conversation he was having with M.J. not even a minute ago. She was practically begging him to tell her what was going on with him, and for a moment, he was actually contemplating it. He knew, beyond any doubt, that if there was one person he could trust with this secret, it would be her. But of course, he had swallowed that desire down like usual and forced himself to put on a brave face that was getting less and less brave by the day.
> 
> And then there was the look on her face as he turned to leave abruptly once more; it clearly exuded so much within it. Anger. Betrayal. Hurt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter: Peter pushes aside his frustrations to deal with Shocker, and seeks solace in the one place he can think of.

Peter darted out of the library and out into the New York night thoroughly ticked off at his situation. As he found an alley where he could discard his clothes, leaving only his Spider-Man costume underneath, he kept thinking back to the conversation he was having with M.J. not even a minute ago. She was practically begging him to tell her what was going on with him, and for a moment, he was actually contemplating it. He knew, beyond any doubt, that if there was one person he could trust with this secret, it would be her. But of course, he had swallowed that desire down like usual and forced himself to put on a brave face that was getting less and less brave by the day.

And then there was the look on her face as he turned to leave abruptly once more; it clearly exuded so much within it. Anger. Betrayal. Hurt. 

Finally, Peter threw on his mask, forcing himself to focus on the task at hand. It had to be Shocker that had caused that rumble moments ago, likely trying to draw him out. Well, it worked, and this time, Shocker wasn't going to get away with it. Peter didn't know how, but he was going to take him down this time. He leapt onto a nearby building rooftop, firing a web as he began swinging around the area, trying to figure out where Shocker might've triggered the quake at. After circling an area of about 5 blocks for about 10 minutes, he realized he was getting nowhere. He then got another idea; he pulled out his phone, and looked to see if there were reports of other quakes anywhere in the city. Fortunately for him, it just so happened that the quake that happened at the library was one of four that had been reported that night, the last one having happened a few blocks away from the area he was circling. 

Shocker was leaving him a trail. 

Peter examined the layout of the quake sights more closely, and took an educated guess as to the destination his adversary was likely trying to lure him too: an old industrial complex that Oscorp had long since abandoned in favor of newer and more advanced buildings. The way Peter figured, this played to his advantage in one critical way: no bystanders. He wouldn't have to worry about protecting anybody other than himself, which would allow him to truly focus on his enemy this time. Putting his phone away, he fired a web and swung off for the complex. 

When he arrived, the place seemed quiet enough. Shocker seemed like someone who was too proud to worry about bringing back up, but Peter was still cautious, entering the building through the ventilation system, hoping at the very least that the element of surprise would be on his side. As he crawled through the vents, he scanned room after room, but found no sign of Shocker. He finally arrived at the largest and most spacious room in the building, where he figured it would be safe for him to make his exit. He was barely halfway out of the vent however, when his spider-sense went crazy. Jumping down to the floor quickly, he narrowly avoided a blast of sheer concussive energy that tore through where Peter had been a moment before. Shifting out of the way of the falling debris caused by the blast, he glanced ahead as Shocker emerged from the shadows in all his oven mitt outfit glory. 

"I don't often admit this, bug," Shocker said, his gauntlets already readying another blast, "but I clearly underestimated you. Turns out, you're harder to kill than an army of cockroaches. Thankfully, that's why we're here tonight, so's I can properly remedy that situation." 

Shocker then launched his right arm forward, the gauntlet on it firing a blast straight towards Peter, who leapt out of the way easily. He knew that until he came up with a plan, it was going to be wise to keep his distance from his adversary. 

"Oh, then I clearly misunderstood," Peter replied, "cause I came here to try and help you realize how ridiculous your fashion choices seem to be." 

"Doesn't have to look nice, as long as it works," Shocker fired back, firing another blast, which Peter again jumped out of the way of. "Besides, it takes one to know one." 

"Excuse me!" Peter said incredulously, "you CANNOT go wrong with red and blue as a superhero. It's iconic!" he said. At this rate, Peter could play keep away all night if he wanted to, but he was going to have to launch an offensive at some point if he was going to stand a chance of victory. As he dodged blast after blast, Peter remembered that when he had tried to strike Shocker during their last meeting, he had been repelled back, the energy in the suit seemingly protecting him. He decided to put that protection to the test. 

"Come one man," Peter taunted from his perch on a column, "aren't all you cowboys supposed to have good aim or something? What kind of shot are you anyway?" 

"Stop jumping around so much and you'll find out," Shocker replied, the frustration beginning to make itself evident in his voice. He fired another blast, and Peter jumped up and out of the way. As the blast tore through the column, Peter fired a web at a chunk of the debris. Doing a somersault in the air, he tossed the debris over his head straight at Shocker, who barely managed to blast it into multiple pieces before it collided with him. 

Okay, onto take two then. 

Peter jumped again, firing another web and multiple chunks of debris and tossed them at Shocker in rapid succession, finally managing to make contact with one in between dodging blasts. The first one didn't appear to do much damage, but then a couple bigger chunks actually managed to knock the man off his feet. 

"Ready to give up yet?" Peter teased, perching himself on the wall just above Shocker, but still a sufficient distance to dodge a potential oncoming blast. 

"Son, if I give up, it's over for me," Shocker said, and there was something different in his voice than before: fear, or at least some kind of anxiousness, about something or someone. 

"What's that supposed to mean?" Peter questioned, again leaping out of the way of another blast. Man, if he had a quarter for every time he had done that in just the last 5 minutes, he'd be able to pay for college!

"It means that you're messing with something that's a lot bigger than you realize!" Shocker shouted, seemingly more upset now than ever. His blasts started coming in more rapid succession, but they were also more erratic than before. Clearly, this fight had gone on longer than Shocker had suspected, and it was making him anxious. The question now was, how could Peter use this to his advantage? 

Peter began playing the fight back through in his head as he jumped, flipped and swung out of the way of various incoming blasts. Shocker had taken out significant chunks of wall, ceiling, but one of that debris had done much damage to Shocker when thrown back at him. Maybe what he needed was something bigger. Finally, he saw something that fit the bill perfectly: multiple large containers that used to carry the lava like liquid that was common in such places. 

Firing a web and pulling himself up, he perched himself so that the chains holding the container were just behind him as he stood on its edge. 

"Come on Shocker, free shot, right here!" Peter shouted, spreading his arms wide and even daring to look straight up, trusting fully in his spider-sense to alert him to an incoming blast. Sure enough, it went off loud and clear, allowing him to once again evade it. The blast tore through the chains almost exactly as planned; Peter pressed his feet to the edge, firing a web and swinging it straight for Shocker, finally pushing forward with his feet. Shocker tried to get away, but Peter had timed it just right so that the container pinned his adversary to the floor. The energy within the suit swelled up initially, trying to fight the pressure of the large mass on top of him, but after a moment if gave out, causing the gauntlets to short circuit. 

"Well, that went longer than I hoped," Peter remarked as he walked to and stood over Shocker, pulling of the gauntlets from his enemy's arms. He lifted the humongous container out of the way, giving it a good shove. He then grabbed Shocker by the chest area of his costume, pulling him up just enough so the man was still on his knees and not eye level with him. 

"You cost me something tonight, so it's time for you to pay me back," Peter said, finally allowing some of the anger he had been feeling for a while now to show itself. 

"I'm guessing you expect me to just cough up who I work for?" Shocker said. 

"That would be helpful, yeah," Peter said, a little disappointed that the man had predicted his thoughts so easily. 

"Look hero," Shocker said, finally looking up to Peter, "there are lines that I can already tell you won't cross. My boss, on the other hand...there are no lines he won't cross. Besides, nothing you can do to me would be any worse that what he would."

Peter just stared at Shocker for a moment, figuring silent intensity was his last bet at breaking his foe, but he gave up less than 10 seconds in. Whoever his enemy worked for, it was clear that he was a man to be feared, and Peter himself didn't exactly have that reputation, even as Spider-Man. He webbed up Shocker into a tight cocoon, and called in an anonymous tip to the police so that they could pick him up. Before he departed, he left a note for the police that simply read: COURTESY OF YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN. 

After Peter left the scene of the fight, he found himself just swinging around the city. He had initially planned to just head home and finally call it a night, but his mind was just too restless, so he figured he'd swing around to try and clear out the cobwebs, so to speak. Instead, all it seemed to do was allow his brain to dwell more and more on the question growing in his mind: 

Was he destined to be alone? 

When Peter had started out as Spider-Man a few months ago, he truly believed that keeping his identity a secret from the world, especially his loved ones, was the right move. He didn't want a face for any enemies he made to associate him with, which would protect those he cared about. Plus, there was always that some would plea for, and maybe convince him to stop, or accidentally blurt something out at the wrong time, despite their best intentions, that would give him away. There were so many ways that things could go wrong if people knew, so keeping it a secret seemed like the best play. 

He was quickly discovering, however, that this made for a much more lonely existence than he thought. His mind kept going back to everyone he had had to lie to the last few days alone: May, Ned, and most frequently it seemed, M.J. The first two didn't seem to be catching on, but the third one clearly suspected something was up, or at least knew that not all was well. Man, he wanted to tell her; he wanted to tell them all, but it particularly hurt how he'd had to duck out from hanging out with M.J. recently. 

Peter wished there was somebody he could talk to about this, but then again, that was his base problem, wasn't it? 

However, he thought of someone who could at least listen. He arced his web, changing his direction with a particular destination in mind. 

"Hey, Uncle Ben," Peter muttered through his mask. Thankfully, probably due to the lateness of the hour, the cemetery was quiet, with nobody there at the time, so he could refer to his uncle directly without fear of being overheard. 

"So, I just caught my first super villain," Peter continued. "He was this guy with these powerful gauntlets and stuff, and they fired these energy blasts right, and....oh who am I kidding, we both know why I'm really here," he said, taking a step closer, getting down on one knee. He dared to pull up his mask and expose his face; he knew that Ben couldn't see or hear him obviously, but it still felt more personal that way. 

"Look, Uncle Ben," Peter started, trying to find the words to express his thoughts properly. "I've been trying so, so very hard to make you proud. Plus, it turns out, I actually really enjoy being Spider-Man, ya know? I get to save lives every day, or at least help people out somehow, and it's the best feeling in the world. I wouldn't trade it for anything. But...I made the choice not to tell anybody. I figured it would be better that way, but now I have no one to talk to about something that is such a huge part of my life now."

He felt a tears beginning to form in his eyes, so he wiped them with his gloved hand before he continued. 

"I know that May can never know; after losing you, knowing that I was out there, risking my life....it'd be too much for her. I can't do that to her, but it's still hard. So hard. Like, you remember M.J, right? I've had to duck out on her multiple times, and I'm pretty sure she knows something is up. If that wasn't enough, I think I might like her too. Man, I just want to tell her everything: how I feel, what I do as Spider-Man, but...don't I owe it to her not place such a huge burden on her; such a huge secret?"

By now, tears were flowing more freely down his cheeks. 

"I really wish you were here," Peter said, putting a hand on the tombstone as he put his head downward, letting the tears drop to the ground. "I just don't know what to do." He let the tears continue to flow for a little bit, before he decided to finally head home. 

"Anyway, that's all I wanted to say," Peter said, standing up once more and pulling his mask back over his face. 

"Thanks Uncle Ben; you always were a good listener. I'll see you soon."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all liked it. Only one more chapter to go! 
> 
> Once again, thank you to all who have been following this story, especially those who have left comments, kudos, etc. Please continue to feel free to leave feedback. 
> 
> My prayers to you all. Stay safe and healthy (physically, mentally, emotionally, etc.) during this crazy time. 
> 
> "Then the king said to me, 'What is it you want?'" Nehemiah 2:4-9


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I'd like to try, if that's okay," he said meekly, turning to his aunt. She said nothing in response, only offering him a light smile and nod before resuming the video. As it moved along, Peter realized he remembered the day surprisingly well: the three of them had decided to go to a local park that day. He smiled as he watched his much younger self try and fail to climb one of the trees in the park, repeatedly falling down. 
> 
> "Let me help you there, squirt," Ben had said, offering his little nephew a hand. It was then that the painful part of the memory came back and Peter watched himself slap his uncle's hand away, insisting he could do it himself. 
> 
> "Not my best moment, was it?" Peter said to May. She didn't say anything back, but he heard her give a light huff of breath, and he could picture her shaking her head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter: Peter learns that his uncle can still pass wisdom on to him, and Peter makes a couple bold decision regarding M.J.

"Hey, Peter," a voice said, and Peter's eyes slowly opened up to see his aunt leaning over him. Her hand was on his shoulder, likely having been what he just felt shake him up in the first place. 

"Oh, hey May," he said, pulling out an arm to try and rub the remaining sleep out of his eyes. 

"So, you were out late last night," May said in what sounded like a nonchalant tone, though Peter still couldn't process everything around him. When he finally met her eyes, he realized she was giving him a pointed look. 

"Oh, yeah," he muttered as he finally sat up. "I'm so sorry May. After M.J. and I parted ways, I...I went to visit him." The sudden expression change in May's face from concerned to sympathetic didn't go unnoticed by Peter. 

"I understand," she muttered, sitting down on the side of the bed. "I find myself going there at random times too, almost like I'm being compelled to. Still, be careful; it sounds like there was some pretty crazy stuff that went down out there last night."

"Oh, yeah, I heard about that," Peter managed to get out. If she only knew...

"Anyway, breakfast is on the table, whenever you're ready," May said, getting up and heading out of the room. 

"Thanks. Love you!" Peter called out. 

"Love you too!" he heard her call back. 

Peter picked out some clothes and got himself ready for the morning. His thoughts were still restless from recent events, particularly from last night, so he busied himself in the hope of distraction. He went down the stairs towards the breakfast table, but stopped short when he caught what was on their TV screen: an old home video, paused, of them and Uncle Ben, where Peter couldn't have been any more than seven years old. 

"Oh, I'm sorry sweetheart," May said. "I meant to turn that off before you came down, but then..."

"It's okay, May." Ever since Ben had died, Peter had found it too hard to watch any footage May had frequently documented of them as a family. Doing so only made the memories come rushing back, and with them, the realization of just how much he missed him. May however had taken to watching them more often; she said reliving the good times helped her focus on appreciating what they had, and made missing him easier. Peter never completely understood it, but he never made her turn it off, instead excusing himself to his room. 

Today, however, something in him decided he was willing to watch it. 

"I'd like to try, if that's okay," he said meekly, turning to his aunt. She said nothing in response, only offering him a light smile and nod before resuming the video. As it moved along, Peter realized he remembered the day surprisingly well: the three of them had decided to go to a local park that day. He smiled as he watched his much younger self try and fail to climb one of the trees in the park, repeatedly falling down. 

"Let me help you there, squirt," Ben had said, offering his little nephew a hand. It was then that the painful part of the memory came back and Peter watched himself slap his uncle's hand away, insisting he could do it himself. 

"Not my best moment, was it?" Peter said to May. She didn't say anything back, but he heard her give a light huff of breath, and he could picture her shaking her head. 

As the video continued, Peter watched as his elementary level self kept trying to climb this tree, with Ben just standing there and watching. Finally, the younger Peter broke down in tears at his failed attempt. 

"Peter, what's the matter?" Ben had asked. 

"I can't do it, Uncle Ben," he had replied. Ben had then turned around and looked at the tree before turning back to Peter.

"No squirt, you can't," the man had said, "not by yourself, anyway. A lot of things in life are like that: we try and try to handle them on our own, but the truth is, sometimes we need some help to get where we want to go." 

"But Uncle Ben," Peter had protested, "you always tell me that I have to be responsible?" 

"That's true," Ben had answered, "but being responsible doesn't mean living life alone son. It means being willing to allow other people to help you out sometimes. If you try to do everything yourself, you'll end up just like you are now." 

Peter felt a tear trickle down his face as he closed his eyes, taking in what Ben had said to him all those years ago. 

"Being responsible doesn't mean living life alone...it means being willing to allow other people to help you..."

Even from beyond the grave, Ben was still helping him through life. 

"You okay sweetie?" May asked, placing a hand on Peter's shoulder.

"Yeah, actually, I think I am," Peter replied, wiping his nose and sniffing back the tears. "Listen, May, is it okay if I just take some breakfast to go? There's something I have to do."

"What is it?" she asked. 

"I...I just need to talk to M.J," Peter replied. "There was something I wanted to tell her last night, but I couldn't find it in myself to do it then, but I think I'm ready now." 

Despite Peter not realizing until after he said that how he made it sound, May offered no snarky comment or goofy look, instead simply nodding her head and offering Peter a sausage biscuit. 

"Go," she said. "Do what you need to do." 

All the way to M.J.'s house, Peter thought about just how he was going to tell her his secret. He ran through what felt like a million ways of him saying the words, but he couldn't decide exactly how to go about it, eventually deciding that the words would just come to him at the proper time. Then, of course, there was his OTHER secret that regarded her specifically, but that had to take a backseat. His first priority had to be Spider-Man. That was what he was going there for. 

After about 20 minutes, Peter arrived at the Jones house in another neighborhood in Queens. Peter had rarely gone there, with M.J. usually wanting to get away, which he understood. He did remember that the place was basically a slightly more rundown version of his and May's home. He walked up to the door, took a breath, and knocked. He stepped back, eager with anticipation. He honestly wondered if she'd be too mad when she saw it was him to let him in. He hadn't even messaged or called her to say he was coming, so he really had no idea what to expect about how upset she would be about last night. 

Finally, after what felt like an eternity (but was most likely about 8 seconds), M.J. answered the door. 

"Oh, hey," she said, her eyes indicating she had been a little caught off guard by his sudden appearance at her front door. 

"Hey," Peter muttered, and suddenly he just froze, standing there in terrified silence. Part of him started screaming that this was a mistake, but he was determined to press forward. "I know I might not be who you want to see right now, but is it okay if I come in?" he asked. 

M.J.'s look hardened just a little at the slightest mention of the night prior, but she nevertheless opened the door wider, gesturing for him to come in. 

"Thanks," Peter said as he stepped in. He looked around, taking in the sights of the place. Things looked a little disheveled, but otherwise it was fundamentally the same as his and May's house, just as he thought. 

"It's been a while since I've been here," Peter remarked out of the blue. 

"Yeah," M.J. said, crossing her arms and looking down at the floor, probably in embarrassment. 

"Sorry," Peter said, chastising himself internally for letting his nervous spirit be so casual about the subject. "Where is he anyway?" 

"Still sleeping off all he drank last night," M.J. remarked, clearly trying to hide the bitterness and frustration about the situation. "He'll probably be out for at least a couple more hours." 

"Gotcha," Peter remarked. He started playing with his hands in a small fit of nervous energy. "Can we sit?" Peter asked, gesturing to the living room. M.J. simply nodded in response, and they both shuffled over there. M.J. took a seat on the edge of their couch, while Peter sat in single chair that was right next to it. For a moment, they sat in silence once more, before Peter finally gathered the courage to speak again.

"M.J, listen," he started, rubbing the back of his neck for a moment before forcing his arm back to his front. He really needed to get a grip on those nervous habits of his. "About last night..."

"Sorry if I pushed too hard, by the way," she suddenly blurted out. 

"What?" Peter asked, caught off guard. 

"Look, I know that sometimes I can be a bit of a pain," M.J. explained. "It's just that you and I have been friends for a long time now, and I can't stand the thought that there would be something going on that was bothering you and that you'd keep it from me."

"I know, and I'm sorry for making you feel that way," Peter said. "That's actually why I'm here."

"Yeah?" M.J. asked, and her body language shifted a little as she leaned forward just a little, clearly anticipating whatever he was going to say next, almost like she was hinging on it. 

This was the moment. This was where he had to say it. He opened his mouth multiple times to do so, but no words would come out. After the second attempt, Peter took a moment to gather himself, closing his eyes and taking in a breath before letting it out as his eyes opened once more. 

"I'm Spider-Man." 

Once again there was silence for a moment as Peter observed M.J.'s face, looking for any outward signs of what she might be thinking. Finally, she let out a short breath, lightly shaking her head. 

"I knew it," she said. 

"Y-you did?" Peter asked, surprised that, of all the words that could have come out of her mouth, those were the ones she chose. 

"Well, if you go by percentage, I was only, like, 67% sure," M.J. explained, "but it made the most sense. Every time you had to randomly disappear, Spider-Man was on the news, including last night. Plus, the fact that you used to barely get through gym, but ever since the...oh my goodness, it was the spider wasn't it? How is that possible though? Do you ACTUALLY shoot webs? How do you..."

"Whoa whoa, slow down," Peter said, doing a break pumping motion with his hands. "I'll explain." He then proceeded to tell her everything: how he felt better than ever before after the bite, how he had looked into using his powers to make money, and also about the night Ben died. 

"Wow," M.J. said. "All this time, I had no idea how Ben's death REALLY affected you." 

"I didn't want to tell anybody about any of this," Peter said. "There were so many variables, like what if you slipped up one day despite your best intentions, but more importantly, what if someone wanted to use you to get to me?" 

"So what changed?" she asked. 

"I...I just realized I couldn't do it alone, and if there was anyone I wanted to share this with, it was you."

"R-really?" M.J. asked, and she looked so...sweet. Should he tell her his other thing now? After all, she had responded so well to the first one; did he dare push his luck?

"Yeah," Peter answered, his voice growing timid again. "I care about you M.J....a lot." Peter looked down, fumbling with his hands as he tried to summon still more courage. Somehow, he was even MORE scared of telling her this thing than that he moonlighted as a superhero in red and blue spandex. "You could even say that I..." He finally forced himself to look her directly in the eyes, if only for the duration he got the words out. 

"I really like you, M.J." 

Time seemed to stop, and Peter couldn't stop staring into her eyes again. Moments ago, when he was waiting for a reaction from her about his first revelation was bad enough; this was easily ten times worse. The seconds felt like hours as her face changed only slightly. She was clearly taking a moment to process this, for better or worse on his part. 

"Y-you're being serious with me right now?" she asked him. "Like, you're really not joking with me, like, you're 100% serious?" There was something in her eyes as she spoke, as if her whole world hinged on his answer to her question. Honestly, this pressure felt heavier than anything he had dealt with as Spider-Man to this point.

"Yes," he replied, his tone feeling a little more calm than the first time he admitted it. "100%." 

She smiled in response, then suddenly she got up from her seat, closed the distance between them, and planted a kiss on his lips. Peter's mind went swirling before going completely blank. After a moment, she pulled away, and he opened his eyes wide, his brain in reboot mode after that little surprise. 

"Sorry," she said a little meekly. "I know that was a bit abrasive, but...I really like you too." 

"Y-you do?" Peter stammered. She nodded her head in response, and Peter couldn't believe how lucky he was getting. For everything that had gone wrong recently, for all the things he'd struggled with or had to give up on as a result of being Spider-Man, he could now live in one solid, unshakable truth: 

Michelle Jones liked him. 

This time, the two of them both leaned forward and met in the middle with another gentle kiss. Peter just held himself there, and she didn't move either, both of them just soaking in the moment. For all his worries of losing her as a friend by sharing his true feelings with her, this moment proved that sometimes, taking a risk was more than worth it. 

Finally, they pulled away, their eyes meeting once again. 

"So, what now?" M.J. spoke up. "Do we like, start holding hands in public now and stuff?" 

"I don't know," Peter answered, realizing he had never really contemplated what would happen if the two of them should ever get this far. "I guess...I guess we'll just figure it out as we go?" he said, shrugging. 

"Sounds good to me," she replied.

"Do you, like, want to grab some food or something?" Peter asked, still a little careful in his words. "It can be like our first date or something." 

"Sure," she said, and she STILL had a huge smile on her face, drawing one out of Peter as well. They got what they needed and headed out the door. As they walked to wherever they would end up eating, Peter dared to slide his hand over to hers, and his heart skipped a couple beats when, instead of resisting, she slide her fingers in between his, their hands now fully clasping one another. 

They walked along, with Peter having what he knew had to be the biggest, dorkiest smile in the world, but he didn't care. M.J. was his girlfriend now. 

Whatever the future held for him, either as Peter Parker of Spider-Man, he was more confident than ever that he could take it on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, it's finished! I'm really curious what you guys think; please feel free to leave your thoughts below. If you didn't especially like it, please explain, so that I can have some thoughts to think about in future writing. 
> 
> Will this become a series? The short answer is: I don't know. I would love to come back to this at some point and follow up on some plot threads in future stories, but the other series I'm working on comes first to me, plus I've got some other ideas of things I would like to right for both the MCU and PS4 versions of Spider-Man in particular. Plus, trying to write two stories at once was a lot harder than I thought, and I want to be able to pour myself into my writing properly. All that to say, we'll see. Never say never! 
> 
> Thanks to all who've supported this story in various ways. Everything you all have done has been greatly appreciated :)
> 
> My prayers go out for all of you, that you may stay safe and healthy in all ways during this crazy time. Stay strong friends! 
> 
> "Do not be overawed when a man grows rich..." Psalm 49:13-20

**Author's Note:**

> Well, here it goes! Trying out my hand at basically doing my own thing, building a Spider-Man universe from the ground up. Basically, you can expect a lot of characters to look and feel largely similar to their MCU counterparts, but with some clear inspiration from the comics and The Spectacular Spider-Man animated series as well. Hope you all enjoy! Any and all comments/feedback is welcome! 
> 
> Again, just for clarification: no, this is NOT part of my Peter Parker's Senior Year Survival Series. This is it's own thing, and I will be working on both this and my story for that series in equal measure for right now, probably alternating days I update them in the future. 
> 
> Stay safe and healthy everyone! 
> 
> "Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it..." Philippians 3:13-14


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